Br. John R. Barker, OFM

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

To appreciate the general horror with which lepers were regarded, one has to understand that their disease rendered them ritually unclean. Most in ancient Israel recognized that lepers were not to blame for their condition, but the fact remained that their presence was a threat because contact with them would render one ritually unclean as well. This ritual uncleanness made it impossible to approach the tabernacle or any cultic site. The priests, as guardians of the sacred spaces, were tasked with determining who or what was ritually unclean or clean. Although social isolation and ostracism were the accidental consequences of what was a purely practical separation, they were the inevitable sad result, adding further pain to the physical condition itself.

Just previous to the present reading, Paul has been counseling the Corinthians to use their Christian freedom responsibly, making sure they do nothing to harm the consciences of others. Specifically, Christians who eat meat sacrificed to idols with a clear conscience should not insist on their “right” to do so if it causes scandal. Charity overrules individual rights (10:23–30). No matter what we do, we must do it for the glory of God. Christians have been “purchased at a price” and now belong to the Lord: “Therefore glorify God with your body” (6:20). Christians are at all times to imitate Christ, who sought not his own benefit “but that of the many,” and so gave glory to God.

Already in last week’s Gospel we had indications of a peculiarity of Mark’s Gospel: Jesus’ frequent warnings not to tell anyone about him. Then, the demons were not permitted to speak. Now, the leper is told to keep his mouth shut after he is healed. Scholars suggest the secretiveness is because Jesus knows that the people will proclaim him prematurely as the Messiah, and perhaps bring unwelcome attention from the authorities. Whatever the reason for the warning, the man ignores it completely, immediately telling everyone what Jesus has done for him. The reign of God, now unleashed through Christ, has too powerful an effect to remain hidden for long.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

In his first response to the “consolation” of his friends for his terrible suffering, Job expresses not only the suffering caused by his physical pain, but especially the pain of loneliness and confusion. He experiences his friends as undependable (6:15) and cannot fathom the reason for his suffering, which is unexplained and unexplainable. In his misery, he reflects on the “drudgery” of life, the human condition that suffering sometimes renders intolerable. Job’s misfortune is profound and cannot be dismissed, but immersed in it as he is, he is unable to see anything in life but misfortune, “slavery,” and trouble. From Job’s current vantage point, life is only short, painful, and ultimately without hope.

Paul’s comments about preaching the gospel fall within a defense of his rights as an apostle. He points out to the Corinthians that although he has the right to receive recompense for his work (9:1–14), he has not and will not insist on this. If Paul “enjoyed” preaching the gospel, then that would be recompense in itself. But in fact he does not do it because he enjoys it, but because he has been commanded by God—he has been “entrusted with a stewardship.” Paradoxically, the fact that Paul preaches without monetary recompense is itself a recompense, because he knows that this is his to do and by doing it he will receive his “share” in the gospel.

Mark’s Gospel famously moves, especially at the beginning, quickly from one scene to the next, with everything happening “immediately.” This narrative urgency reflects Jesus’ own sense of mission; he is eager to do what he has come to do. The Gospel makes clear that the priority is to proclaim the kingdom of God by healing physical and spiritual ailments. Fever and other illnesses are conquered, as are demons, one after the other in rapid succession. There is no better way to show the power of God at work in the world than freeing people from whatever binds them. Even when Jesus is summoned from prayer he responds immediately and goes forward to continue preaching and healing.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

One of the challenges facing a society in which prophets communicate God’s will is knowing who is a real prophet—and who is not. Just because someone claims to speak for God does not mean that person is authentic. Moses was, of course, the first of the prophets, and here he acknowledges the need for someone to speak to Israel, but also sees the problem of knowing to whom one can listen. The importance of the role of prophet and the seriousness of pretending to be one (or even mistakenly thinking one is a prophet) is highlighted by the punishment of death prescribed. It is no small thing to mislead God’s people or to presume to speak for God without authority!

Paul continues to advise the Corinthians how to conduct themselves as the present world passes away, through marriage, the heart of the social structure. Given that the world is “passing away,” should people get married? Paul’s advice: if you are now married, stay married. But if you are not married, do not marry (unless, of course, it will prevent you from sinning; see 7:36). Marriage is not bad in itself, but it does impose restrictions on husband and wife, who cannot devote themselves entirely to God; they are both “anxious about the things of the world.” Paul would like them to be able to focus entirely on “the Lord without distraction.”

The story of the exorcism of the demon is framed by reference to Jesus’ teaching. The people are already “astonished” at his teaching, or rather that he teaches “as one having authority.” There is something different about the source of his teaching, which comes from him and not from someone else. This authority is then confirmed by the exorcism. Once again, the crowds express amazement and refer to his “new teaching with authority.” We see here the close connection between Jesus’ words and his actions, both of which point to the power and good news of the kingdom of God, which Jesus has come to announce in word and to inaugurate in deed.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

Nineveh was a capital of the Assyrian Empire, which oppressed and devastated the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, destroying the latter completely in 722 B.C. A tale showing any sympathy for Nineveh was clearly going to challenge its original hearers, who would likely have been more sympathetic to Jonah’s reluctance to offer repentance than with God’s intention to forgive. Jonah famously complains about God’s forgiveness (4:1–3), forgetting that he himself had received forgiveness from God after running away to evade his prophetic duty. As such Jonah represents the human tendency to revel in God’s forgiveness for ourselves while implicitly or explicitly setting limits on it for others.

Paul assures the Corinthians that the world as they know it is “passing away.” The human world and its various relationships, values, and assumptions is being transformed in light of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Corinthians cannot go on acting as if things are pretty much the same as they were before they heard the gospel. Nothing is the same, Paul insists. The advent of Christ, both into the world and into the life of each believer, is earth-shattering, turning everything upside down. To fail to see this is to fail to grasp the meaning of one’s own baptism and of God’s purposes being effected through Christ.

Again this week Jesus gathers his first disciples, this time actively seeking followers to help him in his mission of proclaiming repentance and announcing the gospel. His message is simple: now is the time in which God’s promises are being fulfilled, when God’s sovereign rule is being manifested and its effects felt in the world. Jesus has come to announce this good news, and he needs people to help him. Whereas in John’s Gospel last week the disciples seek Jesus to “abide” with him, here the disciples have an active role in gathering up the “catch” of God’s kingdom. In both cases, though, the ideal response of the call of the disciples is the same: immediate acceptance of the call, leaving behind everything to follow Jesus.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

The first reading introduces the prophet Samuel as a youth who is not yet familiar with the God for whom he would eventually speak so eloquently. Samuel has come to the temple at Shiloh because he was dedicated to the Lord by his mother, Hannah (1 Samuel 1:9–28). God’s difficulty in getting Samuel’s attention, and the boy’s comical confusion about the source of the voice, point to an important feature of most call narratives of prophets, namely, that the prophetic figure has not sought out the role. This is a key attribute of authentic prophets, who are indeed called and not self-proclaimed. In all cases, though, God is persistent, exemplifying both divine patience and divine determination.

In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul reminds his audience of the implications of their baptism into Christ. They have not grasped that they are different people now and must act accordingly. A case in point is the ongoing sexual immorality of many members of the church. Paul has informed them that they are each a temple of the Spirit (3:16). In the Spirit they are all “joined to the Lord,” which means that their bodies are “members of Christ,” part of Christ’s “body.” Consequently their bodies are not theirs to do with as they please. As temples of God and members of Christ’s body, they are hosting (so to speak) his Spirit. Christians’ bodies are not our own, but the Lord’s.

Whereas in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) Jesus calls his disciples, in John it is the disciples who seek out Jesus and “follow” him, literally and metaphorically. Their response to his question about whom they seek (“Where are you staying?”) seems at first beside the point, but it’s not. The verb translated here as “stay” appears elsewhere in John as “dwell” or “remain,” referring to the mutual, abiding relationship of the Father, Jesus, the Spirit, and believers (14:10, 17; 15:4, 6). Jesus does not tell them where he “stays,” but invites them to see for themselves, and they “remain” with him, which is the point of discipleship for this evangelist.