“He Is Out of His Mind” by Melanie Rigney

 

“He Is Out of His Mind” by Melanie Rigney

Saturday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

For if the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of a heifer’s ashes can sanctify those who are defiled so that their flesh is cleansed, how much more will the Blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences
from dead works to worship the living God. (Hebrews 9:13-14)

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord. (Psalm 47:6)

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.” (Mark 3:20-21)

Piety

Brother Jesus, may I embrace You and all Your family.

Study

What has Jesus been up to before today’s Gospel reading? Well, He cured a man with a withered hand—on the Sabbath, no less—along with a bunch of other people. He named twelve of his followers as apostles. It’s easy to understand why He’d go back to His hometown, back to His people, to rest and recharge, albeit accompanied by the crowd.

Rest and recharge, however, were not what the people provided. They said He was out of His mind.

The misunderstood-by-His-family (nuclear or extended) tugs at our hearts. How could they not appreciate Him, roll out the red carpet and kill the fattened calf for this obviously special person?

How? Perhaps we know better than we realize. The cousin who wins the big scholarship to the prestigious college, we call uppity or snobby. The aunt or uncle who spends significant treasure on overseas missions, we call weird. The sibling who cares for the sick, the dying, or the homeless, even amid the pandemic, we call irresponsible.

Jesus’s majesty was right there in front of His relatives, but they stayed inside their heads and judged or feared, depriving themselves of the blessing that was before them. May we not make the same mistake with our relatives, for a bit of Him is in each of them.

Action

If you haven’t already, visit the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ 9 Days for Life live-stream event site, and make plans to attend at least one.

Image credit:  Alexas_Fotos via Pixabay: https://pixabay.com/photos/horses-play-funny-animal-pony-1396651/