Many of us stay informed about current events by tuning in to radio news, catching snippets of TV broadcasts, or reading newspapers. However, a common issue with these news sources is their overwhelming focus on adverse events—illness outbreaks, civil unrest, international conflicts, extreme weather, fires, crimes, corruption, etc. Interestingly, bad news tends to grab our attention more than positive or uplifting stories. Today, however, we celebrate St. Mark, the Evangelist, the bearer of great good news.
Papias, an early church writer, described Mark as an assistant to St. Peter in Rome. Mark most likely helped translate Peter's Aramaic sermons so that the Roman Christians could understand them. After Peter's death, Mark wrote down what he knew of Peter's memories of Jesus at the request of the Christians in Rome. Mark's Gospel reflects the plain and blunt-speaking style of the Galilean fisherman, capturing the wonder and awe they felt when they witnessed the healing, or other miraculous powers, of Christ.
Mark's Gospel: To the Point
"Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us" (Mark 6:3)?
"When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things" (Mark 6:34).
"They brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment. He took him off by himself, away from the crowd. He put his finger into the man's ears and, spitting, touched his tongue; then he looked up to Heaven and groaned and said to him, "Ephphatha!" (that is, "Be opened!") Immediately, the man's ears were opened, his speech impediment was removed, and he spoke plainly" (Mark 7: 32-25).
"They were on the way, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus went ahead of them" (Mark 10: 32).
"Now, a young man followed him, wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body. They seized him, but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked" (Mk 14: 51-52).
Mark's Jesus is blue-collared, compassionate, earthy, and constantly on the move. He's a carpenter who's not afraid to get his hands dirty, even touching bodily fluids and other people's wounds. Jesus is always on a journey, a step ahead of his disciples, so you feel an urgency in Mark's Gospel account. His followers are often confused, afraid, and, in some cases, run around naked!
Get Your Hands Dirty
We see these themes in today's Gospel reading. Jesus tells his followers that they, too, will get their hands dirty, touching serpents and laying hands on the sick. Jesus then ascends to Heaven while his followers immediately get to work, preaching the Good News.
Nothing is known for certain about Mark's life. According to the legend, he died as a martyr in Alexandria, Egypt. During the Crusades, his remains were brought to Venice and placed in St. Mark's Cathedral.
As we celebrate the Feast of Saint Mark, can we be inspired to act "immediately" and to get our hands dirty in preaching the Good News? Like Jesus' disciples, we may feel confused and lost, but can we feel the same compassion that Jesus had for his lost sheep? Pope Francis asked us to be humble shepherds with a "smell of the sheep" on our hands and to work with urgency. The question is, can we do this?
Saint Mark, Pray for Us.
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