Hebrews 12:4-7.11-15;
Psalm103:1-2.13-14.17-18a;
Mark 6:1-6 Full Readings
Familiarity Breeds Contempt
Brethren, knowing people so well may hinder us from knowing them truly. We get so used to what we have known of people that we tend to be blind to what they have become or are becoming. For the people of Jesus’ hometown, ‘This is the Carpenter, surely…’ and they would not accept him.’ The wisdom in his teachings and the reports about his power, even those that were before their very eyes did not fit into their initial knowledge and impression of him, and thus were unacceptable to them. They did not know that the Carpenter was also the Messiah they awaited and hence, rejected him and he could work no miracle there. We must be careful not to let our familiarity blind us to the wonders of God’s ways. Being a Christian in this age and time requires great openness to God’s continual action in the church, in the world and in our very own brothers and sisters. We must be careful not to set a boundary as to the extent of God’s wonders and his ways.
Are you critical towards others, especially those who may be close to you? The most severe critics are often people very familiar to us, a member of our family, a relative, or neighbor or co-worker we rub shoulders with on a regular basis. Jesus faced severe testing when he returned to his hometown, not simply as the carpenter's son, but now as a rabbi with disciples. It would have been customary for Jesus to go to the synagogue each week during the Sabbath, and when his turn came, to read from the scriptures during the Sabbath service. His hometown folks listened with rapt attention on this occasion because they had heard about the miracles he had performed in other towns. What sign would he do in his hometown?
Look upon your neighbour with the eyes of Christ who comes to heal and restore us. Jesus startled his familiar audience with a seeming rebuke that no prophet or servant of God can receive honor among his own people. The people of Nazareth took offense at Jesus and refused to listen to what he had to say. They despised his preaching because he was a mere workman, a carpenter, and a layman who had no formal training by a scholar or teacher. They also despised him because of his undistinguished family background. How familiarity can breed contempt. Jesus could do no mighty works in their midst because they were closed-minded and unbelieving towards him. If people have come together to hate and to refuse to understand, then they will see no other point of view than their own and they will refuse to love and accept others. How do you treat those who seem disagreeable to you?
Brethren, the very last sentence of the reading speaks of their lack of faith. What was this lack of faith? They recognized in Jesus an extraordinary wisdom and a power of miracles, but this seems not to have been enough. What more was needed? Faith is not the acceptance of a set of propositions, ‘I believe that the earth circles the sun’, etc. It is putting all my trust in God as my only hope. Abraham, the model of faith, went out into the desert, leaving everything on which he relied, everything that made him what he was. He even trusted God to get him out of the unbearable fix when God told him to sacrifice his only son. The townsfolk of Nazareth presumably thought they knew Jesus through and through. They were prepared to acknowledge his wisdom and his miracles. But they were not prepared to go further and see that God was at work in him, that he was the manifestation of God among them. It is all very well to admire Jesus, to think him a fine teacher and a heroic, honorable man, who gave everything for his high ideals; but unless we see God in him, the divine transcendence of all that is human, he cannot work the miracle of taking us to himself.
A word is needed about the brothers and sisters of Jesus at Nazareth. Did Mary have other children? Was not her maternal love fully absorbed in her unique son, Jesus? The tradition is firm in the Church that Mary remained a virgin. Some guess that these brothers and sisters were Joseph’s children by a previous marriage, others that the words are used in a loose sense of close relations and companions even play-mates; the emphasis is on the ordinariness of the group, not on any blood-relationship. In Jewish world brother or sister would extend even to your kinship and so these might have been cousins of Jesus. Let us pray today for mature faith in Jesus.
Let us Pray
Lord Jesus, send forth your Holy Spirit so that I will not only be amazed at what you do in my life but also believe and accept you in my life, so that you will continue to do miracles in my life. Set my heart on fire with your love and truth. Amen.
St Blaise pray for the sick and stay blessed
May I know Jesus and love him above all things
ReplyDelete