A Homily – The Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

First Reading – Ezekiel 2:2-5

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 122(123)

Second Reading – 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Gospel Acclamation – John 1:14,12

Alternative Acclamation – Luke 4:18

The Gospel According to Mark 6:1-6 ©

                        

(NJB)

 

Listen!

 The true prophet speaks to the people on behalf of God, because the prophet hears the voice of God speaking clearly people within the secret chamber of the hearts. God speaks to all people there, do not doubt it, but the prophet is one who is attenuated to the divine and embraces the risk of telling the truth…even to those who do not want to hear it.

 The true prophet speaks to us about justice, mercy and humility, the true prophet conducts themselves lovingly and with compassion. When we hear the prophet speak we know the teaching is real, because it echoes what God is telling us, it strikes a chord and resonates. Within us

 Remember.

 We are all children of God, the creator of the universe, we are all in our own way obstinate, imperfect and rebellious...not even the true prophet is perfect.

 The creator desires nothing more than that we love God, and that we demonstrate our love for the divine through the loving service we provide to one another. God desires mercy from us in the furtherance of justice, that we offer these as gifts to God through the mercy and justice we demonstrate to one another.

 There is one thing that God desires of us, and that we give it directly to God without intermediary; God desires our patience. Therefore, be patient with God, who you will not see in this life, unless you search for the divine reflected in the spirit of your sisters and brothers.

 Know this!

 We are not persecuted by demons or devils that are not of our own making.

Do this:

 Teach from a place of humility, instruct from a place of servitude, lead from a place of gratitude.

 Be mindful.

 We are all flawed human beings. What power we have to light the way to the divine does not come from us, but from God’s spirit within us.

 Remember.

 We are born the children of God, we are not made this way by any power; we coming into being as children of God, in the Word, by the Word and through the Word we come into being, as rational beings in a rational universe. Our status as children of God is as unconditional as God’s love for us.

 Understand this.

 The purpose of the gospel, which means good-news, is to give comfort to the poor. The gospel is meant to free those in bondage, not to replace one set of shackles for another. If you are a teacher of the faith and your ministry is not pointed to this end, then you are failing in your duty. If you use the words of Jesus to shame the poor or to justify ignoring them, if you mistreat the prisoner, the captive or the man or woman bondage, than you are doing the work of someone other than God and you have abandoned Christ.

 Consider the gospel reading for today, which suggests that there are limits to Jesus’ power. It tells us that “he could work no miracles there,” because the people in his home town would not accept him, it is as if the gospel writer wanted us to believe that God’s power and God’s love, that God’s intention for the world was conditional on us.

 The reading tells us that Jesus left his hometown feeling despised, by most if not by all. Even though we know that his mother, Mary, followed him. We know that she was with him when he was crucified, and we know that his brother James was one of the twelve disciples, an apostle of the church and the first bishop of Jerusalem.

 We know these things and therefore we should be able to understand that whatever resistance Jesus met and the beginning of his ministry, at least in relation to his family, was overcome.

 What we are told regarding Jesus’ family relations is less interesting than the revelation that the healing and miracle work Jesus was noted for, could not take place in the absence of faith. This corresponds to other passages in the scripture where the faith of the individual is instrumental in the healing of themselves or their loved ones, some even draw on Jesus’ power without his knowledge or consent, as if it were activated by their faith and not by divine intention.

 This is instructive, for us, because Mark’s gospel is the earliest of the four and it represents a less nuanced apologetic for the “miracle-working” Jesus was often engaged in.

First Reading – Ezekiel 2:2-5

These Rebels Shall Know that There is a Prophet Among Them

The spirit came into me and made me stand up, and I heard the Lord speaking to me. He said, ‘Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to the rebels who have turned against me. Till now they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me. The sons are defiant and obstinate; I am sending you to them, to say, “The Lord says this.” Whether they listen or not, this set of rebels shall know there is a prophet among them.’

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 122(123)

The Lord Guards His People

Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

To you I lift up my eyes,

  to you who dwell in the heavens.

Like the eyes of a servant watching his master,

  like the eyes of a maid on her mistress’s hands,

  so we keep our eyes on the Lord our God,

  as we wait for his kindness.

Take pity on us, Lord, take pity:

  we have had our fill of contempt.

Our souls have had their fill

  of the laughter of the rich,

  of the contempt of the proud.

Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

 

Second Reading – 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

The Lord's Power is at its Best in Weakness

In view of the extraordinary nature of these revelations, to stop me from getting too proud I was given a thorn in the flesh, an angel of Satan to beat me and stop me from getting too proud! About this thing, I have pleaded with the Lord three times for it to leave me, but he has said, ‘My grace is enough for you: my power is at its best in weakness.’ So I shall be very happy to make my weaknesses my special boast so that the power of Christ may stay over me, and that is why I am quite content with my weaknesses, and with insults, hardships, persecutions, and the agonies I go through for Christ’s sake. For it is when I am weak that I am strong.

 

Gospel Acclamation – John 1:14,12

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Word was made flesh and lived among us:

to all who did accept him he gave power to become children of God.

Alleluia!

 

Alternative Acclamation – Luke 4:18

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Lord has sent me to bring the good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives.

Alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Mark 6:1-6 ©

'A Prophet is Only Despised in His Own Country'

Jesus went to his home town and his disciples accompanied him. With the coming of the sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue and most of them were astonished when they heard him. They said, ‘Where did the man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been granted him, and these miracles that are worked through him? This is the carpenter, surely, the son of Mary, the brother of James and Joset and Jude and Simon? His sisters, too, are they not here with us?’ And they would not accept him. And Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is only despised in his own country, among his own relations and in his own house’; and he could work no miracle there, though he cured a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.

 

A Homily – The Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)