Moday, April 25, 2022

 

Feast of Saint Mark, evangelist

I Peter 5:5b-14; Mark 16:15-20)

Very few people will claim the Gospel of Mark as their favorite.  It lacks the beautiful parables of Luke, the structured teaching of Matthew, and the personal encounters of John.  Nevertheless, Scripture scholars tend to favor this gospel.  It was most probably the first written and therefore possibly has better historical accuracy.  More than that, it presents Jesus with a variety of emotions which underscore his humanness.

Today’s passage comes at the very end of the gospel.  Most biblical interpreters say that it was attached to the original story to include the tradition of Jesus’ appearances.  After scolding his apostles for not believing Mary Magdalene, he here sends them off to proclaim the gospel.  The commission is interesting.  Throughout Mark’s story, the apostles exhibit severe character flaws.  They don’t understand what Jesus teaches.  They vie for prominence.  Most pitifully, they run away as Jesus’ captors seize him in the garden. 

We can take some solace in Mark’s treatment of the apostles.  We may be as wanting as they are.  Yet Jesus also commissions us to proclaim the gospel.  We should not be afraid to tells others of our belief in Jesus’ promise of eternal life. As the passage declares, we will find signs accompanying our proclamation.  We may not want to pick up snakes, but perhaps we will experience other wonders.  We might learn a new language or see sick people’s health improving after we pray for them.

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