Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Mark 3: 7-12

Jesus withdrew toward the sea with his disciples.
A large number of people followed from Galilee and from Judea.
Hearing what he was doing, 
a large number of people came to him also from Jerusalem, 
from Idumea, from beyond the Jordan, 
and from the neighborhood of Tyre and Sidon.
He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, 
so that they would not crush him.
He had cured many and, as a result, those who had diseases
were pressing upon him to touch him.
And whenever unclean spirits saw him they would fall down before him 
and shout, “You are the Son of God.”
He warned them sternly not to make him known.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Try to imagine the crowds following Jesus. There were the sick, the hungry, the poor, the deaf, the blind, and scariest of all, the possessed.

It seems Jesus is casting out demons everywhere he goes. And when they see him, the demons cry out, “You are the Son of God!”

“Quiet!” he commands them. 

Why does Jesus insist upon not making his divine presence known?

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In the ancient world, the term, “son of God” was a relatively common term. Emperors and kings often used the title to describe their power and closeness to the gods. 

When the demons call Jesus the “Son of God,” the crowds could easily mistake their words to mean that Jesus is an earthly king looking to expand his reign, making him a direct threat to Rome.

If this idea takes root, then Jesus can be arrested, even executed on the spot. Meaning, from the beginning of his ministry, demons are trying to stop the spread of his reign. 

This is why Jesus needs to conceal his identity; he needs time to teach the crowds what kind of king he really is. There never has been – nor ever will be – another one like him. 

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Jesus is a king of peace; born in a manger, not a palace; who leads by serving; who forgives sinners; who washes his disciples’ feet; who lays down his life only to take it up again. 

Anyone who wants to be part of that kingdom must follow his example. As Saint Paul says, “the kingdom of God is a matter of justice, peace, and the joy that is given by the Holy Spirit. Whoever serves Christ in this way pleases God.”

We can please God in the simplest of ways: praying for others, reaching out to the lonely, sharing our resources, and maintaining a positive attitude throughout these challenging times. 

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So how will I spread the kingdom of God today? 

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Gospel: Mark 3:1-6

Jesus entered the synagogue.
There was a man there who had a withered hand.
They watched Jesus closely
to see if he would cure him on the sabbath
so that they might accuse him.
He said to the man with the withered hand,
“Come up here before us.”
Then he said to the Pharisees,
“Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?”
But they remained silent.
Looking around at them with anger
and grieved at their hardness of heart,
Jesus said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”
He stretched it out and his hand was restored.
The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel
with the Herodians against him to put him to death.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I’m sure we’ve all met someone who’s said, “I’m spiritual, but not religious.”

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It’s become quite the popular approach to faith. “Away with all of the rules and boundaries of religion,” they say. “Do good and good will come to you.”

Much like karma. You get what you give.

But such an approach ignores the truth of divine justice. God becomes more like a hippie than a judge. 

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In the Gospel, we find the opposite approach.

The scribes and the Pharisees are religious, but not spiritual.

They treat religion in a very rigid sense – God gives us rules to be followed. If you follow them, then you can earn your salvation. You cannot work on the Sabbath, for example, even if you perform an act of mercy like Jesus did. 

To them, God is strictly a judge. You get what you deserve.

Such an approach leaves no room for mercy.

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Catholics take the middle of the road; we’re both spiritual and religious.

God is merciful, but he’s also our judge.

The one criterion by which we’ll be judged, Jesus says, is love. This is why the final question Jesus asks Peter after his resurrection is:

“Peter, do you love me?”

It’s the same question the Lord asks us today. “Do you love me?” And by extension, “Do you love your neighbor?”

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May all of our words and actions today answer that question with a resounding, YES!

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Gospel: Mark 2: 23-28

As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There’s only one group of people whom Jesus cannot stomach: 

It isn’t sinners, tax collectors, or prostitutes. He forgave them all.

The only ones Jesus condemns are the religious authorities of his day. Specifically, those who were hard of heart. He calls them everything from hypocrites to “whitewashed tombs,” clean on the outside but filthy within.

They were obsessed with rules, convinced that if they followed all 613 commandments (many of which they made themselves), then they would be pleasing to God. 

But what good is it to avoid eating grain on the Sabbath, as we hear in today’s Gospel, if you hate your neighbor and avoid charity?

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Like the Jews in Jesus’ day, Catholics also follow a series of rules. 

We attend Mass on Sundays. We say our prayers. We avoid eating meat on Fridays during Lent.

But if we avoid being charitable – or if we hate our neighbors, including people who are different from us or who disagree with us – then following these rules means little.

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This is true religion: loving God by serving your neighbor. 

As Saint John tells us, “Whoever does not love a brother or sister whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”

Think of a neighbor. And find a way to love them.

That will be pleasing to God.

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