“…he taught them as one having authority…” (Mark 1:22)
(Year B: Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, 31st
January 2021)
God is love. This is the foundation of our faith and our
lives in Jesus Christ. We have been
created in love, by love, for love. Yet,
there is much in the world around us that is wrong and sometimes very wrong. In
my parents’ lifetime there were two world wars in which millions perished and
many more suffered greatly. Today, millions suffer from disease, hunger, pain,
want and fear.
The evil disease called covid has devastated individuals,
families and communities. It is killing many every day. In addition to the
economic devastation in terms of jobs and businesses there are human tragedies,
separations, confinements and loss of physical contact and touch. And, then,
there are the pillars of human living such as the arts, culture, sports and
religious worship and sacramental life that have been impacted massively.
The image of evil spirits being rebuked and exorcised by
Jesus in today’s Gospel story seems very modern and relevant on a second or
third reading of this passage. Are we not in the midst of a thoroughly evil
reality that watches for opportunity and seeks out to kill the most vulnerable
and the least able to protect themselves?
Once latched on to a body the evil virus gets to work, if it can, in
causing multi-organ failure and leaving traces of damage for many in what we
know recognise as ‘long covid’. Never
before have we witnessed such an extraordinary and invisible evil in our midst
wrecking havoc in its train and outsmarting, so far, governments, agencies and
medical personnel.
Over and beyond and before covid, It is clear that evil
rules in many places. Closer to home, our political landscape is never free
from the influence of lies and corruption. Honesty and courage are in rare
supply.
If we honestly look at our own lives we can see the roots of
selfishness, distrust and animosity. We may acknowledge the presence of what
might be termed the four horsemen of death made worse during this extraordinary
time:
- Sadness
- Anxiety
- Anger
- Guilt
We may surf on these horsemen or we may allow ourselves to
be led by the Holy Spirit.
The sure sign of God’s healing presence is in the way that
it dispels sadness, anxiety, anger and guilt. We may continue to experience
some or all of these feelings but we are no longer submerged or controlled by them.
Of themselves, such feelings are not evil. Rather, the way in which they may
control and, ultimately, destroy us is evil. We have choices.
Some translations of this passage refer to the fact that
Jesus’ teachings left a ‘deep impression’ on his listeners. Why? Because Jesus
lived what he preached. What you saw was what you got. And so it is today for
you and me, dear sister or dear brother. In our day, in our little corner, in
our situation which may be less than ideal, we are called to be witnesses not
by threatening, flattering, manipulating or showing off but by a deep, sincere,
open and respectful attitude towards others.
No matter how different others may be; no matter how wounded they or we
may be; no matter how much ‘stuff’ has happened between the other and me –
there is always an opportunity to be deeply truthful and deeply caring – moment
by moment.
A gesture, a look, a word, an action might leave a deep
impression and change the lives of others. Then again, it might not. But, we
can say to ourselves at the end of every day and, ultimately, at the end of our
lives: ‘I did my best’, ‘I failed but kept starting out all over again’, ‘I am
glad that I tried’ …
Nowadays people look for others who are honest, open and
caring. This is what gives authority to our witness just as it did to the Holy
One of God, Jesus of Nazareth.
The good news is that we are not on our own. We are surrounded
by a cloud of witnesses and Jesus our leader has gone before us and has come
back to us in the Holy Spirit, the Word of Life and the Sacrament of Unity.
God is not dead. He lives through Christ in us.
(words above = 705)
WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Gospel notes
Jesus attracts the attention of the people. He has something
interesting and compelling to say. In teaching with authority he increases
their desire to hear more. Above all, his teaching moves people to discover new
ways of living. Linked to his teaching is the work of miracles and deep
cleansing. Here is the Word made flesh
at work in Capernaum. It is about a deep reboot.
We move from the call of the disciples in the verses
immediately preceding this passage to teaching to healing and to miracles.
21-22: Teaching with a difference
They went to Capernaum; and when the Sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
The people were impressed with Jesus’s teaching not only because of its content but because of the way in which Jesus spoke and taught. At this early stage of the gospel of Mark, we do not know what, specifically, Jesus taught the people. Suffice it to say that Jesus was no ordinary Rabbi or prophet. He lives what he teaches; he teaches what he lives.
23-24: evil speaks
Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’
According to the limited understanding of the time, sickness
was associated with evil of some sort. Curing of illness was, therefore, seen
as an act of cleansing and expulsion of evil spirits. In these verses, evil
comes face to face with the Holy One of God. The evil spirit gets its
Christology right!
25-26: Jesus conquers evil
But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ And the unclean spirit, throwing him into convulsions and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
In the eye of the storm both here in later passages in the Gospel Jesus rebukes the tempest and forces of evil. ‘Be silent’, he says. Christ is our vaccine so to speak. He is more than any man-made or nature based medication. He is the Savour of our souls. In him we find true freedom from spiritual disease and corruption. The problems of the world start and end in the human heart where Christ meets us and re-births us.
27-28: Power over evil
They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.
To teach with authority is to live what one teaches and to
teach what one lives. In this way, Jesus the only Son of God could look evil in
the eye as he did in the desert, in his public ministry and the cross – and conquer
it.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.