Word to the Wise
Wednesday, February 6, 2013 -
[Heb 12:4-7, 11-15 and Mk 6:1-6]He could work no miracle there, apart from curing a few who were sick by laying hands on then, so much did their lack of faith distress him.
The "there" in question is Nazareth! Jesus returned to his home town but the folks there could not accept a son of the local carpenter. He showed a wisdom and knowledge that made them suspicious. He was, in our words, "getting above himself!" "Where did he get all this? What kind of wisdom is he endowed with..... They found him too much for them." They weren't the only ones who were distressed. Jesus was distressed by their lack of faith and found it difficult to do anything with them since faith in him was necessary for his work. For the evangelist Mark, this shows how complete the rejection of Jesus was! There was not even home town loyalty or family acceptance.
The "confrontational" style of the Gospel of Mark is a challenge. We are forced to ask ourselves where we stand in regard to this carpenter from Nazareth! Sometimes we in churchy faith that we can forget the one who got it all started. Jesus can fade to the background while we give our time and devotion to lesser spiritual exercises. Perhaps we could put ourselves in that audence in Nazareth and see what our own reaction would be! What would it take to convince us? AMEN
[Note to the Beloved Congregation - I'm having some computer woes that may delay posting over the next couple of days! I'm hoping my webmaster can clear it all up.]