4th Sunday Year B - Homily 5

Homily 5 - 2021 

In today’s brief Gospel passage, Mark made two comments about Jesus’ teaching. Firstly he wrote: “Jesus teaching made a deep impression on them because, unlike the scribes, he taught them with authority.” And then, after outlining how Jesus had expelled an unclean spirit from someone, Mark wrote: “The people were astonished”. More than a “deep impression” this time. And then came their comment: “Here is a teaching that is new, and with authority behind it.”

Let us look more closely.

Firstly, Jesus’ impact on people — “deep impression”, building up to “astonishment”. Has the Gospel ever had that effect on you? Are you glad it has? or glad it hasn’t? How would you describe its effect on you?

We need not be surprised that the people saw Jesus’ expelling the unclean spirit as “teaching”. You might have heard of St Francis’ advice to his followers, “Preach the Gospel always. Use words when you have to.” What is your reaction in general to Gospel accounts of exorcisms? Have you ever seen them as relevant in any way to your own situation? What if you toned down the supernatural elements and allowed demonic possession to also cover more common addictions, or obsessions, or phobias, or even things like workaholism or smoking or other common compulsions? Have you or your family ever labelled you as a shop-aholic or choc-aholic? Would you really like to be free from any of those addictions? Have you ever asked Jesus to set you free?

The Gospel possibility is particularly a wonderful sense of freedom. But freedom is interesting. It can seem more attractive as a possibility than as a reality. Given the opportunity, freedom can be frightening. It challenges the familiar.

In the Gospel today, the people referred approvingly to Jesus’ “authority”. They contrasted it to the authority of the “scribes”. But Mark did not make very clear what they meant. However, there was obviously something quite different in the way that Jesus taught, officially unauthorised though he was. I like to see Jesus’ “authority” as an obvious inner strength shining through, an inner integrity. He was not handing on what someone else had told him to say. He was speaking from his own experience, his own convictions. He knew what he was talking about. I also think that he must have somehow let people know that he truly respected them. Even when he suggested change, and costly change, he did it because he took people seriously.

Have you ever felt Jesus communicating with you? wanting to share with you? genuinely wanting to bring joy into your life? Or do you know about him mainly from the teaching of us “scribes” up the front here? or the nuns or brothers who taught you at school? or your parents?

Today’s Gospel passage concluded: “Jesus’ reputation rapidly spread everywhere, through all the surrounding Galilean countryside.” Have you ever wondered what must have happened that eventually the crowds allied themselves with the chief priests and the leading scribes in shouting for Jesus’ death, and joined in their jeering at him as he hung on the cross dying?

Certainly, that was not the whole story. Luke’s follow-up story to his Gospel, the Acts of Apostles, reported large crowds of people from Jerusalem and elsewhere joining themselves to the new-born group of disciples.