I am intrigued by the metaphor of “itching ears” in our epistle reading. Last night, I watched the movie “Luther,” the story of Martin Luther, his trials and tribulations with the established Church of his day regarding his perception of scripture and the call of Christian living. I suspect that, from the perspective of the authorities in Rome at that time, Luther would have been described as having “itching ears.” He could not be content with the status quo, with what Rome, by their support of various practices, apparently considered appropriate Christian behavior. From his perspective, Luther must have considered those folks to be the ones with “itching ears;” they were the ones who would “not put up with sound doctrine. . .[who] accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and . . .turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths.” Regardless of who may have had the “itching ears,” we know the results of that conflict through what has come to be called the Reformation. (If you haven’t seen the movie, I recommend it.)

In the epistle, the term “itching ears” is negative. I would like to turn the metaphor upside down--or right side up, from my perspective. I think “itching ears” is a good thing, the symptom of those who want to know more about God and God’s ways in the world, who want to hear the word of God in a way that speaks to them in the relevance of the world as it is today and where it might be going. I suspect that “itching ears” are a sign of a prophet, that “itching ears” are what stir prophets to recognize the insufficiency of the status quo and to spur them to push the envelope of how we might come to know God in new ways, become aware of the Holy Compassionate One in our lives day by day, to recognize the call to Oneness with the Divine and all creation. I am grateful for the courage of those who are inspired to honor their “itching ears” and share their revelations with us regardless of the cost, those like John Spong, Marcus Borg, Matthew Fox, Neale Donald Walsch, and David Bohm, among others.