In one of the great Peanuts cartoons by Charles Schulz, Charlie Brown makes a heartfelt appeal: “Believe in me!” A little blonde girl walks by without even giving him a glance. In the next frame, Charlie cries out again: “Believe in me!” His own beloved dog, Snoopy, trots by, lost in his own thoughts. In the next frame Charlie has fallen into stride with another little girl, who is trying to ignore him as he cries out again: “Believe in me!” In the final frame, Charlie is sitting on the curb, chin in his hands, staring hopelessly. “I just can’t get people to believe in me!”
Today’s Gospel paints a similar picture of Jesus being rejected by his own townspeople in Nazareth. Scripture says: “And Jesus was amazed at their unbelief.” Jesus is calling out to us: “Believe in me!” How are we going to respond?
