Monday of the
Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
(James 3:13-18; Mark 9:14-29)
A glioblastoma is a malignant brain tumor for which there
is no known cure. It is the cancer that caused
the death of Senator Ted Kennedy. Victims
of glioblastomas often feel so desperate that they will try anything. The man whose son is possessed in the gospel
today is driven by such a sense of powerlessness when he comes to Jesus.
However, he first meets Jesus’ disciples. They have cast out devils on their apostolic
journeys, but evidently they have limited power to do so. Jesus tells them at the end of the gospel
that some cases require “prayer” by which he probably means the most intense of
kinds like takes place between him and the Father. Jesus responds to man’s request for help even
though the man admits a lack of belief.
He casts out the devil to everyone’s edification.
What disturbs us about the passage is Jesus’ impatience over
people’s lack of faith. We might ask if unbelief
is not understandable after the attempted genocides of the last century. Perhaps it is, but maybe the same atrocities
give even more reason to cling to Jesus.
By his death he liberated his disciples from false hopes. His care has been forwarded to us so that we
might assist others.
