Breaking the Word

7^th Week in Ord. Time, Thursday – 24^th February 2022 — Gospel: Mark 9,41-50

Choices Towards Eternity

Jesus uses graphic hyperbole in his teaching method. He exhorts his disciples to radically remove any sinful temptations and selfish attachments that endanger our eternal destiny. He asks them to become aware of their selfish desires of greed, pride and lust that keep them away from spreading the kingdom of God. Each of his sayings contrast the two possible destinies resulting from God’s final judgement: the kingdom of God or the fires of hell. In the age to come, we will all fully enter the eternity we have chosen for ourselves. Jesus depicts hell using the words from the last verse of Isaiah, which describe those who rebel against God: “for their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh” (Isa 66,24). These images describe in figurative language the anguish of eternal separation from God. With every decision and action over the course of our lifetime we orient ourselves either to heaven or hell, eternal life with God or eternal alienation from him, and at death we embrace what has truly become our choice.

7^th Week in Ord. Time, Wednesday – 23^rd February 2022 — Gospel: Mark 9,38-40

Shun Exclusiveness

John comes to Jesus hoping to be commended for stopping an exorcist who was using Jesus’ name in exorcism. Despite the fact that the individual casting out demons was doing something objectively good, the disciples were upset because he wasn’t part of their group but was using Jesus’ name. The disciples’ attitude is very close to that of the scribes and Pharisees who reject Jesus, not because he works against God but because he isn’t in their exclusive club (Mk 3,22). John is also telling in his words, “he was not following us.” There is no “us” to follow: there is only Christ. Paul talks about this when he disciplines the Corinthians for claiming to follow a human leader – Apollos or Peter or himself (1Cor 1,12). Paul points out that such thinking leads to ungodly groupism, when in reality all are servants of the Lord ( 1Cor 3,3-5). The fact that this man was apparently successful, where the disciples themselves had recently failed, would have also been a blow to their pride.

John’s expression could mean, the disciples assume they are first and will have the most authority. In fact, the disciples expected Jesus to work as they envisioned. They wanted to limit God’s power. How often are we like the disciples, wanting God to act the way we want? If we seek to do the will of God and are open to the divine guidance which God gives, things will turn out better than we could ever imagine. We will be working with and for God, not trying to make God to work with and for us.