Gospel Reflection For The 31st day of January in the year of Our Lord, 2024
Gospel
Mark 6:1-6
1 And going out from thence, he went into his own country; and his disciples followed him. 2 And when the sabbath was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were in admiration at his doctrine, saying: How came this man by all these things? and what wisdom is this that is given to him, and such mighty works as are wrought by his hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joseph, and Jude, and Simon? are not also his sisters here with us? And they were scandalized in regard of him. 4 And Jesus said to them: A prophet is not without honor, but in his own country, and in his own house, and among his own kindred. 5 And he could not do any miracles there, only that he cured a few that were sick, laying his hands upon them. 6 And he wondered because of their unbelief, and he went through the villages round about teaching.
I have always found today’s Gospel passage to be a very human scene. Jesus has become famous as a prophet throughout the region and many believe Him to the be the Messiah. He returns home and those who knew Him before He began his earthly ministry cannot recognize Him. To them, He is just the local kid from a poor, hard-working family. He was likely a quiet kid that was not very popular among His peers… not getting into the trouble that boys enjoy or playing rough games. We know He was single. Likely, the young Jesus did not socialize much. There is even a tendency to view quiet children as unintelligent. Seen in this light, it is little wonder that our Lord was not appreciated in His hometown.
As with most stories in the Bible, though, this incident is allegorical. While our Lord was rejected in His home town, soon He would be rejected by nearly all of Jerusalem just days after being honored and celebrated on Palm Sunday. By that time, everyone knew He could heal the sick, raise the dead and was a prophet, at the very least. But, they demanded His crucifixion. Why? Maybe they began to take things for granted. Maybe Jesus made them uncomfortable, in their normal lives. Maybe they were just too close to see things as there truly were. It is easy for us to recognize Christ as Lord; we have perspective and we know how the story ends. Very rarely, do we see things as they are in the moment. It is estimated that at least half of all Jews became Christian after the Resurrection, so they were not immune to the truth. They just couldn’t see it at the time.
It is all too easy in our lives to do the same. Too often we go through the motions at Holy Mass, distracted and unaware of the profound truth surrounding us. We pray absentmindedly. We don’t appreciate Holy Days and traditions. We get complacent in our faith and morals. If we recognized Jesus before us as God, of course we wouldn’t. But, human nature makes mindfulness difficult and life is full of distractions. We have to make a conscious effort to be mindful of God.
On a side note…. This story reminds me of why I never attended a high school reunion!
A Daily Catholic Devotional Reflections on the Daily Mass readings January-June, 2024. may be purchased as a .pdf directly from me using this link https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/12/a-daily-catholic-devotional-reflections.html or in paperback on Amazon amazon.com/dp/B0CPD1DC7Q
I am also giving the .pdf as a free Thank You gift to anyone who becomes a paid subscriber to The Uncensored Catholic newsletter.
Gospel passages are taken from the Douay Rheims Bible.