Word to the Wise
Thursday, January 16, 2025 - Thursday in the 1st Week in Ordinary Time
[Heb 3:7-14 and Mark 1:40-45]A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, "If you wish, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said to him, "I do will it. Be made clean." The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. Then. warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. Then he said to him, "See what you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them." The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. [Mark]
The "Messianic secret" is one of the major features of the Gospel According to Mark. Why is it that Jesus would not want to have his miracles publicized? Was it to avoid being overwhelmed by requests? Was it to avoid the attention of the religious authorities who were growing more and more hostile to his ministry? On the surface, the answer to both those questions would seem to be "yes." But that would be to miss the whole point of the Gospel According to Mark. The real sign of Jesus' identity is not his ability to heal, but his death and resurrection. In a sense, the Gospel According to Mark is a suspense story. We are ultimately asked to read everything that precedes Jesus' death and resurrection in the light of Jesus' death and resurrection.
The Gospel According to Mark can be dated possibly close to the time that St. Paul was still alive. [d. 64-ish A.D.] The evangelist Mark is traditionally associated with St. Paul as one of his disciples and co-workers. St. Paul's letters say very little about Jesus' ministry of healing and teaching. He focuses almost entirely on the meaning of Jesus' death and resurrection. It would not be surprising if the evangelist Mark did the same, but one must read his whole gospel to "get it." During the gospel narrative, the disciples clearly do not recognize Jesus' full identity [cf. Mark 6:52 and 16:14] until after his resurrection. Their lack of faith contrasts sharply with the centurion at the foot of the cross: "Truly this man was the Son of God!" [Mark 15:39].
There were other figures in Jesus' time who claimed to be healers and teachers and "messiahs." What made the difference was Jesus' death and resurrection. That is a message that we need to "get," if we want to be his disciple. AMEN