Mark 1:29-39

FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 

Mark 1:29-39

THE TEXT BELOW IS THE TRANSCRIPTION OF THE VIDEO COMMENTARY BY FR. FERNANDO ARMELLINI

A good Sunday for everyone.

Last week the evangelist Mark told us about the beginning of Jesus' public life. He told us that on the Sabbath day, along with the first four of his disciples, they entered the synagogue, and there he began to teach, but as soon as he opened his mouth, a demonic man who was in the synagogue began to scream and rant against him and Jesus simply said 'shut up, get out of this man.' And the devil shook the possessed person violently and left him alone. In the face of this act of exorcism, all those present were amazed and exclaimed: "What kind of word is this, which commands the unclean spirits, and they obey and go away?”

They understood that the word of Jesus does not leave the demons present in people undisturbed; Jesus and the demons cannot be present together. We already said last Sunday that by a demon, we do not mean the little devil who is crushed by exorcists; no, they refer to all those evil forces that cause inhumane behaviour: pride, envy, jealousy, attachment to money that leads to killing, debauchery. These are the demons that lead to actions unworthy of the human person.

Where the word of Jesus comes, where his gospel comes, these demons must leave. Specifically, when the word of the gospel enters the hearts, the demons can no longer be there. What he did at the synagogue of Capernaum is the first sign of what Jesus will do during all his public life. With his gospel, he will cast out demons. This happened in the sacred place, in the place of prayer. But does Jesus preach and expel demons only in the sacred place? Let's hear where... always on the Sabbath day:

“On leaving the synagogue, Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.”

On the first day of Jesus' public life, some episodes occurred that are related by the Evangelist Mark, and to understand the message he wants to communicate, it is important to go beyond the simple fact of chronicle. All healings, like all gestures made by Jesus, always have a symbolic meaning; they indicate what is happening. Where Jesus comes, where his word, his gospel comes, nothing remains as before.

We will focus on the significant details of a healing narrative that we will hear in a moment; it is a healing that took place in a specific place, not just in any house but in Peter's house. The house of Peter in the gospels has a symbolic meaning: it is the Christian community; it is the Church. It is this church that is sick, and Jesus wants to cure it; it is not that this illness is present only in the Christian community. It is present in all humanity, but before the word of Christ leaves this house to heal this disease in the whole world, first, it needs to be cured within the Christian community, within the church.

Let's hear what kind of disease it is:

"Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her. He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her, and she waited on them.”

We have heard the shortest of all the healing stories performed by Jesus; it is a very simple wonder that seems of little importance. There is nothing spectacular in this miracle that arouses people's astonishment. However, the evangelist puts in this narrative some details that, as a chronicle, are not important. Yet, if Mark underlines them when he writes his gospel 35 years later, if he remembers it in spite of not being personally present in the scene, it means he wants to say that these details have a symbolic value.

It is an invitation to read this story as a parable. First of all, who is the sick person, and where is she? She is in Peter's house, which is the Christian community, and she is a woman. Woman in the Old Testament was Israel; in the New Testament, it is the Christian community that is presented as a woman; both the Christian community as well as Israel can have a very serious illness by having this fever.

What is her condition? She is in bed, and the one who is in bed is blocked, unable to move, does not work, does not act, is not useful to anyone, needs to be helped, to be served, but does not serve; this person is not a creator, does nothing great. Why is this woman like this? Because she has a fever. Let's make the diagnosis of this disease.

What causes the condition of not moving, of being served? It is the bad impulse, the instinct that leads you not to serve your brother or sister but to dominate them, and then you do nothing; you don't care what they may need because you think about yourself; you think about being served. This fever is what leads you to behave in the opposite way of a disciple of Christ; it is the fever that immobilizes you and blocks your capacity to love, that is, to serve your brother and sister. And we found this fever in Peter's house.

In chapter 9, it is said that Jesus enters the house with his disciples, not just any house, he enters Peter's house, and when he arrives, he asks his disciples what they are talking about on the road. And they shut up because they were embarrassed. They had discussed who was first among them, who was able to dominate over others and make himself serve. This is the

fever that Jesus wants to cure, first among his disciples; before going to heal others, they must let themselves be healed of this fever, and the one who heals them is the gospel of Christ.

It is instinctive for us to make ourselves served, and it is from this instinct that all the evils of the world come: theft, slander, injustice, abuse of power and wars - all come from this fever. Let us try to think, to become aware of this disease. When someone introduces us to a friend, what comes to mind naturally? ‘Who knows... maybe he can even be useful to me because I saw he is a good plumber, or better, he is a computer wizard and I just need help with my computer.' This is the thought that comes to us immediately and spontaneously: How can I make use of the other. On the other hand, if someone introduces me to a person in need because they know I have the possibility and the ability to help, what comes spontaneously to me? I try to think and say to myself: 'Why are you looking for me? A little discretion... don’t bother’ ... Try to ask yourself: What is it that comes to you spontaneously? If it comes spontaneously to you to be served, then you have a fever. If, instead, it spontaneously comes to you: What can I do for this person who clearly has a need? Then you are in good health; you are a child of God.

Paul, in the letter to the Galatians, in chapter 5, verse 13, says, "Make yourselves servants to one another... this is the whole law of Christ.” Let's see now who can heal from this fever and how he heals. The story tells us about the disciples who immediately talk about this disease to Jesus.

This is the first message, and it is valid for us. Do you want to be healed from this fever? Present it to Jesus. Present it to his Gospel because this Gospel heals your illness. Be careful who you present it to because you can present it to someone who does not cure you of this disease and, instead of curing you, maybe it makes it worse. But the fact that the disciples present this illness to Jesus is also another important message. How to heal? As the disciples did, one must prepare to cure this disease that is found in the world and in their brothers and sisters.

Before healing your brother or sister, you must talk to Jesus about it, and make the diagnosis together with him, of the disease of your brother or sister because otherwise, if you do not tune your thoughts to the Master's, you will not cure that disease and maybe you make it even worse. Let us now look at the gestures with which Jesus heals the sick. Let us note that he does not say any words; he speaks with gestures because the whole person of Jesus is the word, tells us something about God, and we should always observe very well what he does, whom he approaches, who he caresses, whom he hugs, whom he kisses, whom he lets himself be hugged and kissed by.

Everything in him speaks to us. The first gesture he makes: he approaching the sick person. Jesus does not walk away, he is not afraid, he does not hide, does not begin to curse against the diseases of humanity, against the evil in the world. How many times do we Christians also say: ‘Look at this sick society; everything is getting worse and worse; what kind of a youth do we have?' We look for someone to blame... we say of that person that if he has this disease and it's not doing any good, is that he went looking for it. You don't have to make these speeches.

Approach the sick person... This is the humanity that Jesus knew. Jesus was not afraid of the diseases of our world. In reality, it is not our goodness that attracts Jesus but our need. He came to cure our fevers that make us incapable of being people, that is, of loving, of serving.

That is the lesson for the disciple: He who has assimilated the thoughts and feelings of the Teacher approaches those who are in need and becomes a neighbour to anyone in inhuman situations and conditions. Second gesture: he lifts her up by taking her by the hand. This is not a trivial annotation of a chronicle but of the gesture that symbolizes the communication of the life force to those who are weak and to those who are fragile. When a brother is in trouble, give him a hand, lean over him, and get him back on his feet.

The Greek verb that is chosen by the evangelist is ἥγειρεν = 'egéirein' is the one used in the New Testament to indicate resurrection, rising from the dead, from a condition of non-life. The Christian is called to repeat these gestures of the Teacher and is called to raise to new life every person who is in inhuman conditions.

"The fever left her." The healing stories told in the gospels always end with a demonstration that the person is cured: the paralytic takes his stretcher and goes out, and the blind man begins to see and says, 'Now I see very well, I see the people, I used to see in a confused way', Jairus' daughter begins to eat... They are signs that they have resurrected. What is the sign that this woman is healed and fully recovered?

"She waited on them.” She served them. Not: she served him. She began to serve them and continued to serve them. New life is manifested in service, in the interest of the needs of the brother or sister, in asking what I can do for those around me who need my help? If you are cured, are you required to say a few more prayers? It's okay to pray a little more, but the sign of one's healing is when one begins to love. Then you are a resurrected person.

Service is the characteristic of the true disciple, of the one who came to serve not to be served. And the word that healed within Peter's house, now goes out of this house and at the door is sick humanity waiting for this Word. All the sick of the city represent here the sick of all humankind, who now wait for the Master to come out of that door with his gospel, with his Word, because it is this Word that cures the ills of humanity. The economy has its own laws, which are cruel laws that often do not cure humanity; politics follows its own principles and interests of its own people, their own nation, and we know what this disease has produced in the world. It has produced a situation that we all verify. There is no need for environmentalists to point this out. We all realize how we have reduced the world with our selfishness. We do not think in future generations.

This humanity is waiting for that Word to come out of Peter's house that cures fever that is causing all the problems. All wars are caused by this fever. Let us listen to what happens when the Word leaves Peter's house:

"When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons. The whole town was gathered at the door. He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons, not permitting them to speak because they knew him.”

This day, which was the first day of Jesus' public life, came to an end and during the Sabbath people respected the rule that forbade moving, carrying loads, and healing the sick, but when night came, it was the first day of the week, and they all began to move and lead to the door of Peter's house, where they knew he was present the one who could heal them all; they bring their sick.

This detail is important: sick people do not go alone. There is almost always someone who carries them; the sick are brought to Jesus by someone who has realized the need for a brother or sister, and had to find this Word that can heal all diseases. The exceptions are lepers, who cannot be accompanied by anyone because they are impure or the woman who had loss of blood and goes directly to Jesus, and also the woman from Tyre and Sidon because she too, being a pagan, could not be accompanied by Jesus. These are impure people who instinctively and spontaneously go to Jesus because they know that he welcomes them as they are, but the other sick people are accompanied by someone who is aware of their condition and takes them to the one who can really heal them, which is the gospel, is the Word that comes out of Peter's house, after the healing of that fever has taken place in this house that we have talked about.

And when Jesus comes out, he heals. He heals all those who need to be healed and does not let the demons speak. The demons, of course, as we have said, are all these forces of death that are present in man, these instincts that take us away from love. Why can't they talk? Because Jesus is at the beginning of the revelation of God and man according to God. His person could be misunderstood because people could take him as a healer, one of the many healers or a person that you have to make friends with because he seems to be successful seems to bring good luck. This is the misunderstanding.

Jesus does not allow to talk until he has revealed his face in a definitive and unequivocal way on the cross. There he told us everything; more than that he cannot tell us about the love of God and about the man who has managed to love to the point of giving everything of himself. He who has understood this can speak of him, but until he has come to see where he gave his love is better not to talk about him.

It is the end, therefore, of this day that Mark places at the beginning of his gospel because it indicates how all the days of Jesus' public life will be. Now it's night; everyone is going to rest. Let's hear how the next day begins:

"Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed. Simon and those who were with him pursued him and, on finding him, said, ‘Everyone is looking for you.’ He told them, ‘Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come.’ So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.”

Now Mark tells us how Jesus begins his days: with prayer, and prayer is not a simple gesture of a sign of the cross that we see done before a sports competition; it can also be done by us before starting a trip or before starting a job. If it is not a superstitious gesture, it is a nice gesture because it reminds us that we are disciples of Christ.

Morning prayer means seeing with the Lord the day that awaits us and is about to begin. It means listening to him how we have to live this day, and maybe we should tell him: 'Today I'm going to meet my boss who is a rude guy, who is always nervous'... and I will listen to the Lord how I have to behave if I want to be a disciple of Christ, even if my instinct tells me that I have to answer him back because he deserves it.

I have to listen to what the Lord tells me; if I don't pray, then I behave like everyone else, not as a disciple of Christ. If I pray in the morning, I hear the Lord telling me what brothers or sisters I am called to serve and with what disposition I have to approach them; and do not tell me that you do not listen to the word of the Lord who speaks to you because if you are his disciple, if you know the gospel, then you know how Jesus thinks. When you present your problem to him, you listen to what he says.

If, on the other hand, we do not pray during the day, we let ourselves be overwhelmed by the doing and all day long, we spin around and around like a top, and we arrive at night exhausted. We may have earned a little more money, but we spend it on stress, and we have to buy medicine. And that's exactly what happens to Peter. In the morning, he doesn't pray, he is agitated and anxious because when he leaves the house, finds all the people at the door, waiting for his service, waiting for Jesus, waiting for the word that heals them, and Jesus is not there. Here, says Peter, 'there is so much to do, and he who is in charge is not  here, he went to pray.'

Peter has not been cured of the illness, of the fever, he believes that he has Jesus at his disposal to be able to adapt to his dreams, which are the dreams of power. Peter still has a fever, and that is why he is going after Jesus. The Greek verb used is κατε διωκω = 'katé dioko', which means to pursue a person, that's what Peter does, he has not prayed and is agitated. This is the first misunderstanding between Jesus and his disciples. In fact, Peter begins with a rebuke to Jesus. When he finds him he says: 'Now that you are becoming famous you are running away and we, who have risked our lives for success, you abandon us and walk away.'

Here is the disease that is still present in many Christians who would like to have Jesus available for their projects, their dreams and needs. When we need him, we pray to Jesus, and he has to be there. It doesn't work that way; you can't force him to do what we want him to do. With his word, he shows us how we are called to live as disciples, as children of God. Human reasoning, like that of Peter, is to stop and enjoy success that he has had, to enjoy the prestige that he has acquired because all Capernaum knows that Peter serves the Master that heals all diseases. Jesus comes to serve everyone; the light of the word that saves must reach every person.

It is the invitation to become aware that the disciple has a new world to build, he must not stop in gratification, in personal success as this is not the reason we follow Christ. To follow Christ is to be called to announce to each person this word that cures all illnesses.

I wish you all a good Sunday and a good week.