Tuesday of Week 6 of Ordinary Time – Gospel

Commentary on Mark 8:14-21

Yesterday we saw the blindness of the Pharisees in asking Jesus to give some sign of his authority from God.  Today we see the blindness of Jesus’ own disciples.  This, of course, is pointing to our own blindness in not recognising the clear presence of God in our own lives.

The disciples are travelling across the lake in the boat.  They had forgotten to bring food with them and there was only one loaf between them all.  As they cross the lake, Jesus is talking to them saying:

Watch out—beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.

For the Jews, yeast was a corrupting agent because it caused fermentation.  That was why at the Pasch they ate unleavened, incorrupt bread.  And Paul tells the Corinthians:

Clean out the old yeast so that you may be a new batch of dough, as you really are unleavened. (1 Cor 5:7)

Jesus is telling his disciples to avoid two opposing kinds of corruption: that of the Pharisees, which is based on narrow-minded and intolerant legalism, and that of Herod, which is based on amoral and hedonistic pleasure-seeking.

However, the disciples are not really listening to their Master.  They latch on to the word “yeast” and link it with their present obsession—not enough bread.  Their lunch is the only thing on their minds.  Jesus, of course, knows what is going on in their minds.

He scolds them:

Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes and fail to see? Do you have ears and fail to hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?

They answer, “Twelve”, and Jesus says:

And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?

And they responded, “Seven”.

Then Jesus said to them:

Do you not yet understand?

Five loaves for 5,000 with 12 baskets over, seven loaves for 4,000 with seven baskets over, and they, a mere dozen people, are worried about being short of food when Jesus is with them?

Mark tends to be very hard on the disciples.  They cannot see, they cannot hear, and they fail to understand what is happening before their very eyes.  But they are learning gradually, as we shall see. 

Of course, Mark is firing his shots not just at the disciples, but at you and me.  How much faith do we have in God’s care for us?  Can we hear? Can we see?  Are we also without understanding?

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Tuesday of Week 6 of Ordinary Time – First Reading

Commentary on James 1:12-18

It is clear that the Christians James is writing to in this lovely passage today are under strong pressures in the living of their faith.  As in our own day, there were the pulls of a society which set great store by material wealth, social status and influence.  In addition, there were the difficulties of living in a society where one’s Christian faith could bring harassment and persecution.  At times, it would seem much easier to abandon it and follow the crowd. James writes:

Blessed is anyone who endures temptation.

It is the ‘blessedness’ that Jesus spoke about in the Beatitudes.  James praises those who come triumphantly through such times of trial and testing.  They will:

…receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

The “crown” (Greek, stephanos, from which the name ‘Stephen’ comes) was the term for the wreath placed on the head of a victorious athlete or military leader (one often sees pictures of Julius Caesar wearing such a wreath).  In the Second Letter to Timothy, Paul is quoted as being confident of getting such a crown:

I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness…
(2 Tim 4:6-8; see also 1 Pet 5:4; Rev 2:10)

However, James reminds us that no one should ever think that these tests or temptations come directly from God.  God can never be the source of an urge to do or say what is evil and wrong.

God himself, of course, cannot be tempted.  In a God who is infinite Goodness, there is nothing that could entice him as more desirable than what he already is and has.  Nor does he tempt anyone in the sense of leading a person to do what is morally evil.  Again, because God is all Goodness, such a situation is impossible. Of course, we may find ourselves in situations where our faith and integrity are challenged.  God does not prevent such situations arising.  But if we fail, it is the result of our own choice.

This is the clear message of the creation story in Genesis.  The Fall was due solely to the choice made by the Man and his wife.  God is all good and the source only of what is good.

All our temptations originate in ourselves, in the various passions that drive us. The passage mentions three stages: desire, sin and death.  These we see in the sin of the first woman and her husband.  We see the same in David’s infatuation with Bathsheba (see the commentary for Friday of Week 3 of Ordinary Time).  This is something we have all experienced in some form.

On the contrary, every good thing we experience comes directly from the “Father of lights”, the Father who presides over the whole universe with its myriad stars and constellations.  And, unlike them, he never suffers change or eclipse.  He is above all a creating God.

In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave birth to us by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

The “word of truth” is everything God has revealed to the human race; it is the supreme Law.  For us now, the word of Truth is the gospel, the Way that Jesus the Son of God proclaimed.

And we are to be the “first fruits” of his creatures.  Just as the first sheaf of the harvest was an indication that the whole harvest would eventually follow, so the early Christians were an indication that a great number of people would eventually be born again.  This is our great responsibility towards the world around us.

It is through his Word, the Logos, that God brings forth everything that has been made and we human beings are in a special category.  For we are made in his likeness, in our ability to love and to know, in our ability to co-create with him.  So today, let us look at the sources of evil which are in us and see where they have been leading us.

At the same time, let us also count our blessings, and become aware of the wonderful gifts that God has given and continues to give us every single day.  Let us also remember our responsibility to help in the building of the Kingdom, making this world a better place for all.

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