Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr B. June 9, 2024.
Readings
1st: Genesis 3:9-15
2nd: II Corinthians 4:13 - 15:1
Gospel Mark 3:20-35
Theme: Moral Maturity, The Test of Healthy Decisions And Discerned Choices In Life
My dear people of God, today is Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr B. Our reflections would touch on all the readings of today. Life, at any given time, should be closely guided and animated by healthy decisions and discerned choices, both of which give a true reflection of our moral maturity. That includes Jesus. It is helpful we put things in proper context and perspective, lest we are carried away by the popular opinion of the day that Jesus is out of His mind. The portion of Mark's Gospel that we read today narrates a hectic moment when Jesus and His disciples were pressurised by milling crowds coming and going that they could not have time even to eat. Jesus was so plunged into carrying out His Father's will that His own family members concluded that He (Jesus) had grown mad. What that means is that, even at the early stage of His public ministry opposition was coming not only from those outside, but even from His own family. It is clear that Jesus' moral decisions and choices must have given justifiable cause for people to think and conclude that He was not normal. Remember that Jesus, by now, had left the carpentry job of His foster father (Joseph) which job's scanty income kept and sustained the family; He had left His humble home and now had no where to lay His head. As if all that was not enough, He thought it morally necessary to put Himself on a deliberate clash and collusion course with the self proclaimed "owners and administrators" of power of the day. No one ever dared such a collusion and got away scot-free. Besides all those radical decisions and choices, the (12) men Jesus gathered around Himself to participate and assist in the "building of His Father's Kingdom" were not materials of any merit. Indeed, they were simply not impressive - some illiterate fishermen, a one time social murderer (tax-collector) a nationalistic fanatic and others of like ilk. So, in the eyes and minds of observers, Jesus was turning the conventionally accepted values and norms of the world upside down. Such moral decisions and choices could not have come from one in the right frame of thinking. Certainly He was mad.
Many young people of Jesus' age at this time were jobless (as is still the case today). At least, Jesus had a menial carpentry job but abandoned it to join and swell up the numbers of the unemployed. People chose the sycophantic path of life in order to play safe. Jesus was openly challenging the feared and revered authority of the leaders without weighing the full import of His actions. For the vast majority of people at this time, human judgements (what will people say) superseded the voice of God. Jesus, by words and actions, cared very little about what people said, in so far as He was convinced He was doing the supreme Will of the Father. Against this background, we can, and should understand and appreciate the popular opinion of the day that Jesus was mad. In a subtle bid to support the claim of His own family, the scribes who arrived from Jerusalem, apparently sent to investigate the activities of Jesus and His growing popularity, alleged that Jesus was possessed. Words, like those of the scribes, once spoken, are like bullets let fly. The sad thing is that truth has endurance but a lie has speed and, in most cases, wins shallow minded converts/belivers with relative ease. The main intention of the scribes was a disguised gimmick and calumny (slander), framed and orchestrated to turn the people away from Jesus. That was purely an act of moral immaturity, a sharp contrast to the moral integrity of Jesus. Such incurable attitude of character assassination is still very prominent in all sectors of society. We prayerfully hope the situation is better in the Church.
The response of Jesus to His family (relatives) seeking to see Him should not be misconstrued as an act of open disrespect of mother, brothers and sisters and/or a blunt disregard for the importance of blood ties. By that spontaneous response, Jesus laid down the conditions of true kingship. From our own concept and understanding of family, it is not only hard, but indeed, very scandalous for us to realize and appreciate the truth and strength of Jesus' response. In the mind of Jesus, the bond of spiritual relationship is more important than that of blood relationship. Personal observation would reveal and confirm that the calibre of characters (apostles) Jesus gathered around Himself could not have been brought together unless by a committed spiritual relationship with God. Is it not amazing and awesome that a pugnacious (quarrelsome) character like Peter could live and work with characters like John and James who were so ambitious for power and a flaring desire for revenge; that a character like Matthew, a Jew tax-collector, who should be hated and avoided, could be able to get along peacefully with Simon the Jewish Zealot!. Our First Reading of today presents a similar scene of moral immaturity involving the first couple - Adam & Eve. After that nasty FALL (sin), they began a shameleas process of blame game. Very simple questions, "Adam, where are you?", "Have you eaten the fruit of the tree I forbade you?" that demanded simple answers, Adam gave a long explanation, passed the blame to Eve and boldly blamed God for imposing "a woman" on him. When God questioned Eve, she, in turn, passed the blame to the snake. That was moral immaturity exhibited at its peak - the attempts to ran away from the self. The consequences of immature decissions and choices (sin) are not only dangerous, they are also very contagious/infectious. Sadly, no human problem is ever solved merely by denying it. In contrast, with the moral immaturity of the scribes and Adam & Eve, the author of our Second Reading of today seeks to put the moral maturity of St. Paul very close at that of Jesus. Accused of his insincerity and selfishness, St. Paul does not blame anyone else for his possible faults and mistakes. He did not distance himself from God and the Christian community. He rather siezed the opportunity of his current criticisms and hardships as a spring board to leap deep into the future and see that the momentary sufferings for Christ in this world are nothing compared with the glory in the next. A problem admitted and accepted is half the solution. Therefore, in the context of today's liturgy, it is safe to assert that maturity is the ability to control anger (that demonic second master of our nature) and settle differences without violence. Maturity is the ability to accept the consequences of our actions and inactions. That is what it means to swallow a humble pie. Humility is not humiliation. Maturity is the capacity to face unpleasantness, discomfort and even defeat without physical and/or psychological collapse. Moral maturity gives radiance (light) to who we are. Moral maturity is the reason for respect and the grounds for veneration. The more the maturity, the greater the person. May God give us grace to grow into maturity commensurate (reflective) with our age and role in society. Continue to recite the Holy Rosary daily. God richly bless you and your family.
Rev. Fr. Thomas L. Debuo - Catholic Diocese of Damongo, Ghana. (0244511306/0243711926)