Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

On leaving the synagogue
Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.
They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.
Then the fever left her and she waited on them.

When it was evening, after sunset,
they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.
The whole town was gathered at the door.
He cured many who were sick with various diseases,
and he drove out many demons,
not permitting them to speak because they knew him.

Rising very early before dawn, 
he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.”
He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages
that I may preach there also.
For this purpose have I come.”
So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons 
throughout the whole of Galilee.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Today’s Gospel describes a full day in the life of Jesus.

We begin mid-morning. Jesus leaves the synagogue, having just cast out an unclean spirit – his first public miracle in Mark’s Gospel. 

“After lunch,” he enters Simon Peter’s home, where he heals Simon’s mother-in-law who is deathly ill. Then word spreads fast enough for crowds to start gathering around him, so the Lord continues his healing work well after sunset.

I’d imagine by the end of the night, he was exhausted.

But the Gospel tells us that the next morning he rose, “very early before dawn,” where he went off on his own to a deserted place to pray. I’d imagine Jesus began each day that way – up early in prayer.

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Prayer is also meant to sustain our own spiritual lives.

The Lord reminds us the best time to do it is “very early before dawn,” before the stress, demands, and weight of other commitments compete for our time. It’s like having a spiritual cup of coffee.

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Like the Lord, have I tried praying, “very early before dawn?” And what is my prayer life like?

Often it changes over time. Some weeks, even months or longer, might be spent in silence; other moments can be filled with scripture study, spiritual reading, uplifting music, journaling, or heart-to-heart sharing with the Lord.

Over time, a certain peace settles in which cannot be taken away, leading us to discover what the Lord models for us today – prayer is our deepest source of strength. 

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Take a moment of silence now. Allow the Lord to “fill your cup” with grace so that you might know, love, and do his will today.

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Image credits: (1) A Day in the Life of Jesus, YouTube (2) Jesus Heals Peter’s Mother-in-Law, John Bridges (3) Chmeetings

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Mark: 1: 21-28

Jesus came to Capernaum with his followers, 
and on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught.
The people were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;
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!” 
Jesus rebuked him and said, “Quiet!  Come out of him!”
The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him.
All were amazed and asked one another,
 “What is this?
A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.”
His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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When I think of a sacred space, I think of this church. The life-sized crucifix suspended over the altar. This pulpit. The Saints and the Stations of the Cross that line the wall of our church.

Sacred spaces are filled with holy things that point us to God.

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In today’s Gospel, there’s a man with an unclean spirit present in the synagogue. The synagogue is a holy place, so why is he there?

Surely, this man doesn’t belong.  

Or does he?

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I imagine him to be a conflicted man, both a sinner and a believer – a man who knew he was under the power of something stronger than himself.

Perhaps he showed up in the synagogue that day hoping to be set free.

As soon as the Lord lays eyes on him, Jesus says to the evil spirit holding him captive, “Quiet! Come out of him!”

Suddenly, the struggle is over. This man is set free.

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This is the first miracle that Jesus performs in Mark’s Gospel, amplifying the meaning of it. Perhaps Mark uses this man as an image for all of us. 

Every person struggles with something – a particular sin, a lingering weakness, a wound in need of healing. 

The best place to find what we’re looking for is in the house of God, or in the grace-filled silence of prayer.

As the Lord later says, “I have come that they may have life in abundance.” Not only the man in the temple, but all who believe in Him who has come to set us free.

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Image credits: (1) Christ Pantocrator, Mount Sinai (2) GospelImages.com (3) Pinterest

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Gospel: Mark 1: 14-20

After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The Kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the Gospel.”

As he passed by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea;
they were fishermen.
Jesus said to them,
“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Then they left their nets and followed him.
He walked along a little farther
and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They too were in a boat mending their nets.
Then he called them.
So they left their father Zebedee in the boat
along with the hired men and followed him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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One summer while studying for the priesthood, I spent a month volunteering at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal. Little did I realize I’d be taking my future parish on multiple pilgrimages there!

I remember one morning watching an elderly blind priest shuffle in to celebrate Mass. He was holding onto the arm of a young man, who guided him slowly to the altar.

As the priest bent over to kiss the altar, I wondered, “Now, how is he going to celebrate Mass? He can’t see!”

After being guided to his chair, he was handed a set of headphones and a tape player. “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” the priest said. 

Then it hit me…this young man who escorted the priest in for Mass must’ve recorded all of the prayers ahead of time, so that the priest could listen to his voice, then repeat what he heard. 

It was a marvelous bond on multiple levels, reminding me of two things we find growing in today’s Gospel: friendship and the transmission of faith.

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Today Jesus calls four of his first disciples: Peter, Andrew, James, and John. 

Three of them – Peter, James, and John – will later form Christ’s inner circle. They’ll be the ones chosen to witness him in his transfigured glory on Mount Tabor. They’ll also be the ones asked to accompany him in his agony, as he sweats blood privately in Gethsemane.

Meanwhile, Andrew will introduce more people to Jesus than any other disciple in the Gospels.

Together, these four men become the first friends and disciples of Jesus in his public ministry. 

They remind me of that young man who escorted the blind priest into Mass in Fatima. In both cases, faith and friendship were being formed and handed on. They were intertwined, as true faith yields lasting friendship.

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Do I have that kind of friend, whose either inspired my faith, or one whom I can hand my faith onto?

As we start yet another year, perhaps this might become a New Year’s Resolution – not only to grow in faith, but also to share it with a friend.

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Image credits: (1) Steubenville, X (2) My Catholic Life! (3) NPR