4th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Gospel Reading: Mark 1: 21- 28

21 In the city of Capernaum , on a sabbath, Jesus went to the synagogue and began to teach.

22 And his teaching made a great impression on them, because, unlike the scribes, he taught them with authority.

23 In their synagogue just then there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and it shouted,

24 'What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.'

25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, 'Be silent and come out of him!

26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.

27 They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, 'What is this? A new teaching - with authority! He com­ mands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.

28 At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.

Meditation

As we go on with our continuous reading of St Mark's gospel, we find Jesus in Galilee where he starts his public ministry. This passage is in three parts:

•  verses 21-22: a summary of the teaching of Jesus in the syna­gogue;

•  verses 23-27: an example of his ministry of driving out un­ clean spirits;

•  verse 28: the effect of Jesus' ministry.

In the first section, the emphasis is on the contrast between Jesus and the scribes. Here the scribes are symbolical of those who are content to record the teachings of others; Jesus speaks with per­sonal authority.

In verse 28 St Mark evokes, as he often does in his gospel, the spread of Jesus' reputation. Ask yourself how the passage is being fulfilled today, of the church or of any great movement.

Prayer 

Lord, when we look back on our lives

we realise that most of those

who gave us moral teachings spoke platitudes.

They were scribes recording what others had said.

But we thank you that from time to time

you sent us someone like Jesus

who spoke from their own experience,

and shared honestly what they were feeling;

these made a deep impression on us,

because unlike scribes they spoke with authority.

'When the church concerns herself with the development of peoples, she cannot be accused of going outside her own specific field of competence, and still less outside the mandate reamed from the Lord.'
Pope John Paul II, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis

Lord, when the church confines herself

to going to the synagogue and teaching,

concerning herself with what is internal to her, many are happy

they rejoice that she is making a deep impression on them.

But your will is that we should go further

and cast out the demons of our society -

racism, class conflicts,

discrimination against the disadvantaged.

When the church does this there are convulsions and loud cries.

We thank you that in many countries

the church has persevered m following Jesus,

and people have been astonished and questioned themselves,

and her reputation has spread

as one who gives orders to unclean spirits and they obey her.

Lord, we remember a time

when we were held in bondage by an inner force:

•  we could not forgive;

•  we did not want to commit ourselves because we were afraid of failure;

•  ambition was clouding our vision of the truth. Then someone began to speak, challenging us to face the truth

•  one of our children, a friend, a bible passage. We got angry, denied it vehemently, wept, complained to another. Like the man in the gospel, we went into convulsions and cried aloud. We realise now that it was because we knew that the Holy One of God was with us, he had come to do away with our sin.

Eventually, after a long struggle,

we recognised the demon for what it was,

and it went out of us.

Thank you, Lord.

'I can only reach that depth in my neighbour that I can reach in my own spirit.'
Mathew Kelly, Cistercian monk

Lord, our teaching will be new and will have authority behind it only if we have accepted its authority within our own selves.

'Once brought into the light of mutual love, demons lose their power and quietly leave us.'
Henry Nowen

Lord, we thank you

for the times when we have been able to share deeply with a friend

and something that was holding back

our spiritual growth left us.

We knew that Jesus of Nazareth was with us.

Lord, prayer is a moment when we pass

from experiencing the teaching of Jesus as something vague

to knowing that it has authority behind it,

it gives orders even to unclean spirits and they obey it.

Lord, a movement will spread

only if it moves from teaching in a closed room

to casting out the unclean spirits which are oppressing society.