THE WORD
1 Sm 18,6-9;19,1-7 / Mk 3,7-12
Jesus withdrew toward the sea with his disciples. A large number of people (followed) from Galilee and from Judea. Hearing what he was doing, a large number of people came to him also from Jerusalem, from Idumea, from beyond the Jordan, and from the neighborhood of Tyre and Sidon. He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him. He had cured many and, as a result, those who had diseases were pressing upon him to touch him. And whenever unclean spirits saw him they would fall down before him and shout, “You are the Son of God.” He warned them sternly not to make him known.
IN OTHER WORDS
There are those of us who aspire for fame and dream of becoming a celebrity. But there are also those who do not pursue the said dream because they perceive its great dangers. They could lose their lives, suffer possible ill repercussions of fame (e.g. falling into drugs, too much spending, vices), be the object of other people’s envy, run in con ict with other famous people, lead a lonely life caused by little time spent with family/loved ones, become a prey to stalkers, scared that “people use you”, lose people’s respect and support when life is messed up.
Jesus chose not to live like a celebrity. People wanted to make him a king, but he totally rejected their plan. However, his ardent desire to proclaim and make the Kingdom of God tangible soon made him known among peoples of diff erent places. Crowds looked for him and sought to listen to him. The sick and those suff ering from various illnesses wanted to touch him and be healed by him. They saw his miracles and they would ask for more. They witnessed what he was capable of doing and they would not let him go. They would love to possess him and not allow him to go to other places.
In the gospel reading today, Jesus fulfills his ministry by setting certain limits so that “they (people) would not crush him.” He asked his disciples to have a boat ready for him. Jesus was aware of the dangers of his growing mission. He knew he had to take precautions while undertaking bold risks in serving the people. To those he healed he gave the stern warning not to make him known.
Clearly and consistently, Jesus did not seek fame but delity to his mission. He felt the urgency to bring the Good News of the Kingdom to the peripheries of society where the famous of this world would not really like to go. He rejected the path of worldly fame that would only curtail his freedom to bring the reign of God to all people, and not to a privileged few.
In our life and ministry as disciples of Jesus, sometimes we become known because of the good things that we do unto others. How do we manage our popularity? Do we end up systematically enlarging our public image to a considerable degree, or do we set limits to ourselves and to people so as to be faithful to our mission and to make the Lord the center of people’s lives?
- Fr. Edwin Fernandez, SVD | DWC, Laoag
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience. The Word in other words 2016
