Babylon 02 - Secret Messages

Scottish accent audio version here

1 Peter 5:13 She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. (NIV)

We tend to forget that our Christian ancestors lived in troubled times and underwent terrible persecutions. This meant that some of their activities and communications had to be kept secret. This verse is encoded with a secret message that only other Christians would understand.

“She who is in Babylon” – what does it mean? Someone that Peter couldn’t name who was secretly working in Persia? Was he referring to Mary the mother of Jesus on a covert mission in Iraq? Did he mean Mary Magdalene and was she doing some sort of undercover work in the Middle East?

As much as these suggestions sound intriguing, the answer is less complicated. The “she” is the Church, the Mother Church. “Babylon” is the Christian code word for “Rome.” So Peter is writing about the underground church that was flourishing in Rome – a church that met in secret underneath the city in the catacombs.

Peter knew that his letters could have been intercepted, read by the Roman authorities, thus bringing their wrath upon the Christian community. Anyone caught with the letter would have been treated like an insurgent, a home-grown terrorist if you like. And if Rome had been specifically mentioned, it would have brought death to the messenger. So, Peter encrypts the end of the letter with a greeting to tell the recipients that, despite persecution, the church in Rome was still flourishing.

It’s not everyday that we get to read spy mail, but today’s passage from Peter’s letter is just that. It really humbles me to think that the first Christians, who practiced the same faith that I have, had to be careful about what they wrote, said, or sent. They were all true heroes and heroines in my book. They were all true believers of Christ.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we really have an easy time when it comes to matters of faith. We can worship when we like, read scripture without interruption, and even pray without fear of being watched, betrayed, or persecuted. We take our religious freedom for granted and forget the true price of our faith.

Help us to remember that there are others in our world whose Christian faith will cost them their families, their careers, and even their lives today. Keep us from becoming blasé about what our Christians beliefs really mean. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.