COMMENTARY: Easy acts can make the world a better place

By KEVIN POTTINGER

Pope Francis is grabbing headlines as predictions about what 2016 holds for him begin to roll in. The pope had a busy year, complete with a visit to America, where he talked about care for our common home, concern for the poor, human dignity and the value of life.

The news machines were set fully atwitter by him all year.

Pope is a Latin word that’s often translated as papa or daddy. I’m a daddy too, but Francis has several billion more children — spiritually speaking.

Beliefs common to a number of desert faiths — Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Islam and Baha’I include the idea that a Messiah, or Christ, who is the son of God, will appear in human history to redeem God’s people,ascend to heaven and return at the end of time.

What if this Messiah appeared as a dad? Not a pope-style dad with the hat and the robes, but a suburban husband and father? What if the Christ had a car full of kids in basketball uniforms, yammering at him in the Starbucks drive-through as he gripped the wheel of a 12-year-old minivan?

Would Mrs. Christ be on board with all the Son of God stuff? For example, if I were the Suburban Lamb of God, must I get off the couch to pick up my shoes from the living room floor, or could I say, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come,” in a faraway voice, perhaps in Aramaic, and go back to fiddling with my phone?

As an ordinary salaryman, could I get away with providing gallons of tap water to wedding guests, passing it off as vintage pinot grigio?

Several Abrahamic faiths believe that Jesus of Nazareth miraculously turned huge jugs of water into wine. Possibly a nice merlot. If I were the modern Son of Man, my wife might call to remind me that several of the uncles don’t drink anymore, so I’d probably have to turn some of it into Diet Coke. Oh, and a 12-pack of Fanta for the kids.

Many believe that Jesus the Christ took a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish and miraculously fed 5,000 hungry souls, with enough leftovers to fill 12 huge baskets. But as the new-breed Messiah with several small children,wouldn’t I proclaim to the multitudes that I’m not going to start the story until everyone finishes their supper?

Maybe Jesus would have had a little less freedom to minister as the Word Incarnate if he assumed human dad-flesh. Having recently manned the helm of a minivan with my wife and kids on a shopping safari, I can see that having a posse of 12 adult disciples may have made things simpler for Jesus.

Jesus probably didn’t have to stop the procession every 11 minutes for potty breaks, for example. Or stop for both lunch and dinner at the McDonald’s with the tubes. His disciples probably didn’t come to blows in the back seat over whose turn it was to pick the DVD, nor fume silently because Jesus got lost, refused to ask for directions and they ended up missing the ferry. Except that logically, the Son of God couldn’t ever get lost, plus he could simply get out and walk on water anytime he wanted.

And once they’d found the primo fishing spot, where they’d caught so many fish that their boat almost sank, as the business-casual Messiah, could I go fishing with my disciples whenever I wanted? Or would I have to be content working miracles at the kids’ basketball games on Saturday mornings?

If the Anointed One entered modern history as a husband and father, and he was travelling with his disciples, helping the blind to see, the lame to walk and whatnot, would he still call home every night to say goodnight to the kids, and tell his wife that he loved her? I bet he would.

Would he stop in the airport gift shop on his way home to pick up snow-globes and refrigerator magnets for the kids? Would he surprise Mrs. Christ with breakfast in bed, even though he wasn’t in any trouble? Would he tell her in utter sincerity that she’ll always be the prettiest woman in the room? I bet he would.

Would he do everything he could to protect his family? Would he gladly give his life for his children, for his wife, for those that he loves? Surely he would.

If the Messiah was written out of this story, what you’d have left is a pretty ordinary life. Mine, for example. Especially that part about never getting lost.

With apologies to Pope Francis, perhaps his message to America could be logically reduced to this: that the world of the spirit is closer than we think; our sometimes dull, and usually very ordinary, lives are washed with waves ofGod’s grace.