A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 3:20-21)
Jesus came with his disciples into the house. Again the crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat. When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
In today’s short Gospel, Mark depicts the relentlessness of the crowds who came to Jesus for his word and for his healing. The ones who know and love him, who watched him grow and mature, plan to take control of the situation. They believe he has gone mad and fear for his well-being, reject his ministry, and hope to extract him from the people and restore his sanity. David’s reaction to Saul’s and Jonathan’s death, which we hear in the first reading, sheds light on Jesus’ response to the crowds surrounding him. “I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother! Most dear have you been to me; more precious have I held love for you than love for women.” This grief over Jonathan, Saul’s son, foreshadows and expresses Jesus’ extravagant love for his people, despite his ultimate suffering and death for their sake. Jesus, God made man, pities the people he was sent to save and rejects no one who comes to him. He feeds them with the bread of compassion and saves them as they look upon his face.
“Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.” God, help me dwell on these words today from the responsorial psalm. Let them remind me to seek you out during the day, to crowd around the doorway of your house, eager to see you and know your unconditional love. In turn, give me the grace to open the door for others who desire to see where you dwell and look upon your face. Deliver me from evil, Lord; let me receive your mercy and be merciful to others.
From the Gospel acclamation: “Open our hearts, O Lord, to listen to the words of your Son.”
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.