Contributed by Father James M. Donohue, C.R.
Father Jim is a the Vicar Provincial of the Ontario-Kentucky Province of the Congregation of the Resurrection and a professor and chair of the Theology Department at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, MD., where he has taught since 1996.His research and publications deal primarily with the rites of sickness, dying, and death.He teaches courses in systematics, such as Christology and Sacraments, and in pastoral education, such as theology of Lay Ministry, Skills for Ministry, and Youth Ministry.
FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
February 8th, 2015
GATHERING TIME (10-15 minutes)
Introduction to the Word:
The Book of Job is, among the books of the Bible, a difficult one to figure out because most people read only some small parts of it and do not understand the whole story.At its heart, it deals with a very difficult question for any human being: what is at the root of human suffering?This book was written to challenge the perceived answers of its day—thatsuffering comes from evil that people do, and that blessings come from good that people do.Following this logic, it becomes easy to spot the sinners and the blessed of our world; quite simply those who are experiencing suffering must be undergoing their suffering because they are sinners and those who are experiencing blessing must be basking in their blessings because they are good people.The Book of Job is written to debunk such a simplistic notion.While its answers about the question of evil and suffering might not be totally satisfactory to us on their own—there are, after all, other parts of the Bible that deal with this question—it rejects such a simplistic understanding of suffering and posits one that embraces our limited knowledge about something that we encounter so often and in so many ways as part of the human condition.
We sometimes wonder why, if God is so powerful, God would allow suffering in the first place? Why for example, in our times, does God allow such inhuman suffering in so many countries where people are being persecuted and killed in their pursuit of basic freedoms? Why in Third World countries are untold thousands of innocent and orphaned children forced to dig into rotting garbage dumps for a few scraps of bread?Or, closer to home, why do the elderly and the poor languish in the suffocating environs of a lonely room? Why is the future of so many children of the war–torn regions of the world cut short by roadside bombs and suicide attacks? Job learned from his own bitter experience that suffering is primarily a mystery that people will never fathom.
In light of these questions, our gospel reading sheds more light on the question of evil and suffering, understanding it as something that prevents human wholeness and human flourishing.I always think of the Oklahoma bombing of 1995 as a case in point.Many people wondered where God was in the midst of such a tragic occurrence, especially as it involved the deaths of many innocent children.I remember seeing a headline in the Washington Post that, with carnage in the background, blazed: “Where Is God?”An Associated Press photo captured the answer; it is an iconic photo of a fireman holding a baby compassionately in his arms.For me, this is where God was in this tragedy and in all human suffering—on the side of those who suffer.God always aligns Godself in compassion with those who suffer.In his healing of Simon’s mother-in-law and of the many who are sick and possessed, Jesus, the incarnation of God, stands against whatever it is that diminishes human beings, who are most fulfilled in their self-giving to others in service.Through our Baptism, we are called to confront suffering and to offer healing in its many different ways to all who are debilitated and marginalized.In so doing, we imitate Jesus whose healings and exorcisms are signs that God aligns Godself with the suffering of the world.When we do this, we become signs that God’s reign has broken into the world of sin and suffering, and we show by our own Spirit-filled actions that God continues to side with those whose suffering is greatest.
Warm-up Activity (about 8-10 minutes):
In your small group share your thoughts as related to one or more of the following questions:
- All of us have had our share of pain and suffering in our lives. Talk about one or two such situations where you had to deal with some aspect of pain or suffering. How did you manage to deal with it?
- When faced with some aspect of pain or suffering or confusion, do you have a strategy that you find helpful, or do you just pray it goes away?
The Table of the Word
THEME
Jesus’ Gospel as “Good News” to a broken world
Mark entitles his gospel:The Beginning of “the Good News” of Jesus Christ,
the Son of God.
Mark does this for a reason.His Gospel is the story of the One who is“Good News”:
–whose interest in you is not to cause frustration and pain and suffering, but to bring peace and joy to your life;
–whose message is not “Life is tough, so grit your teeth and bear it,” but one who reminds
you that there is a reason for hope; there is someone to believe in; there is someone who
has promised neverto leave you alone in your questions, in your search, or in your pain;
–who assures you of his abiding presence and compassion and care through His own
befriending Spirit;
–who invites you to join with him and with all who again today commit to help heal
the brokenness of our world and restore it to wellness as do Job and Paul and Mark
in today’s readings.
Our attentive listening to Jesus’ Word today has the potential to nurture and empower
our faith sharing community in the same manner as it touched Jesus’ own disciples.
Leader: My friends, today we hear from Job, whose pain is so real to us, whose cries echo our own when we suffer or must witness the suffering of others. Jesus brings his healing and drives out the demons of despair. Let us pray for the healing of the world.
Lord Jesus, when we suffer anguish of mind and body,Lord, have mercy.
Christ Jesus, when sin traps us in the dark and reduces our freedom,Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, as we await the coming of hope and liberation,Lord, have mercy.
Let us pray:
Living God, Loving God,
we thank you and we praise you
for your presence in our hearts, for your presence in our midst,
for this opportunity to come together to “hear and pray” your Word
as we search for meaning to the questions of our lives. God of our forebears,
we give you praise and glory, now and forever. Amen.
SCRIPTURE REFLECTION TIME(45 minutes)
(As Christians we believe that the WORD of God we hear proclaimed each Sunday is an empowering Word, and that God is present in the Word proclaimed.This is the Word that God wants us to hear today.The dynamic of the Small Christian Community, is such that God’s Spirit becomes present, and the gifts of the Spirit are experienced as empowering and life-giving).
FIRST READING (Job 7:1–4, 6–7)
Job spoke to his friends: “Does not the human being have a hard service on earth, and are not their days like the days of a labourer?Like a slave who longs for the shadow, and like labourers who look for their wages, so I am allotted months of emptiness, and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
“When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I rise?’ But the night is long, and I am full of tossing until dawn.
“My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and come to their end without hope.Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good.”
The Word of the Lord.Thanks be to God.
SECOND READING (1 Corinthians 9:16–19, 22–23)
Brothers and sisters: If I proclaim the Gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me and woe to me if I do not proclaim the Gospel!For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission.What then is my reward?Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the Gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the Gospel.
For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them.
To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak.I have become all things to all people that I might by all means save some.I do it all for the sake of the Gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.
The Word of the Lord.Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL (Mark 1: 29-39)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark. Glory to you, O Lord.
As soon as Jesus and his disciples left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her at once.He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
That evening, at sunset, they brought to Jesus all who were sick or possessed with demons.And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
In the morning, while it was still very dark, Jesus got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him.When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.”
He answered, “Let us go on to the neighbouring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.”And Jesus went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
The Gospel of the Lord.Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Lectio Divina means “sacred prayer.”It was a popular form of prayer in the early Church. This Word proclaimed today is God’s own Word, God’s way of speaking to you today through his own Spirit.So take a few moments to be quiet, allowing this Word you have just heard to touch you as you reflect quietly on the three readings.Is there a word or thought that somehow attracts you or has your interest?If so, simply identify it—no need to explain it—just identify it.
COMMENTARY:
The first reading of Job appears to be a litany of hopelessness.But his relationship with God was so trusting and secure that he knew he could be bold in his complaining (prayer). His trust was so firmly based that he never doubted that God would hear his prayer and give him the grace and strength to bear the suffering.Job was not a prophet or a Messiah. He was a fellow traveler not unlike ourselves, our one true representative in Scripture, daring to bombard God with questions and feelings we tend to hold in our hearts.Happily, his request is received favourably by God, as it is our own, so long as our trust, like Job’s, remains intact. So Job personifies in a dramatic way how suffering can either crush us or make us whole.
The opening verse of our gospel indicates that Jesus has just left the synagogue; in fact, here he has healed a man possessed by a demon.Now he enters a house and heals a woman.These simple verses actually point to the profoundly inclusive nature of Jesus’ healing ministry, for among his first healings, he heals a man in a synagogue and a woman in a house.We might think of early times when Christians gathered to celebrate the Lord’s Supper in “house-churches,” remembering that they gradually became outnumbered by Gentiles.Keeping this in mind, these first healings of Jesus point to the fact that he came for both Jews and Gentiles, men and women.This is echoed in Paul’s proclamation that “in Christ” there is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave or free, male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).We might also note that the gospel ends by saying that “she began to serve them.”Perhaps Simon’s mother-in-law made a great meal for them, but the deeper meaning here is revealed in the Greek word διηκόνει [diēkonei], which means to be of service.Clearly, the first chapter of Mark is indicating that Christian service is not just the domain of men, but also the call and responsibility of women.These few simple verses carry quite an impact: all Christians, no matter their gender, are called to be of Christ’s service and this service is to be provided to all in need.
Paul learned his lesson well. Following the example of Jesus, he offered himself in service of others, becoming all things to all people. Are we able to do the same? Can we continue to allow the elderly to languish? The children to starve? Or allow hatred to rule the world? Can we continue to allow misunderstanding to fester in our families? Can we continue to allow such demons to possess us today? So many challenging questions!Just as we so easily identify with Job in his suffering, so we might try to identify with Paul in his commitment to spread God’s Word. By the power of God, Jesus addressed the needs of the day; by the power of the same God, Paul addressed the needs of his time. Now it is our turn. We are the disciples who must bring the good news to the broken-hearted, to those whose lives are crying out for help. This mission of ours is both a commission and a blessing: even as we commit to carry on Jesus’ ministry of service to the most needy, we are blest beyond measure by that very same act. Within the very act of our serving others, God chooses to return a hundred fold to us. Can we afford not to respond to his call to discipleship?
(Allow about 5 – 10 minutes for the participants to react to the Commentary to identify a newly discovered insight or idea.)
Questions for Reflection and Discussion:
1. (Job 7:2-3)“Like a slave who longs for the shade, and like labourers who look for wages, so I amallotted months of emptiness.”
Job compares the anguish of humanity to the longing of a hardworking slave, looking for a
moment in the shade and out of the hot sun.
a)To what extent do you think people commonly allow themselves to feel the pain of the world?What do you think are some of the obstacles that create this insensitivity? Share your thoughts.
b)I have heard it said that when God closes a door to us he opens a window. From your experience do you find this to be true?
2. (1 Corinthians 9) “I do it all for the sake of the Gospel.”
Paul was consumed with a desire, even a passion, to communicate the Gospel—a rare gift.
For many of us, however, in regard to the obligations put on us by reason of our faith, we
tend to have a “maintenance” frame of mind.We tend to do only what we “have to do.”
a)Do you agree or disagree with this observation?Comment.What are the circumstances, in your judgment, that disposed Paul to be so open and receptive to the Spirit, the source of his energy and passion?
b)Take a few minutes to share with your group a need or a ministry you are presently engaged in within your own family or your parish family that you find personally satisfying for yourself.
3.(Mark 1:38)” “Let us go into the nearby villages that I may preach there also.For this isthe purpose for which I have come.”
Once a year I find a need to clear out my closet of “stuff” I have stored that I thought was valuable. Many of us have a tendency to hang onto things even though they are virtually useless
to us.
a)Who do you think pleases God more? Someone who gratefully makes the most of his good fortune? Or someone who humbly accepts misfortune? Share your thoughts.
b)What prevents you from beinga little more generous especially in regard to those most
in need in your community? Name one or two of the services that you do in support of
your parish and/or the poor in your community.
CARING-PRAYING TIME:(15-20 minutes)
1.Word for the Week:
Who is religious?
A religious man is a person who holds God and man in one thought at one time, at all times, who suffers harm done to others, whose greatest passion is compassion, whose greatest strength is love and defiance of despair.Abraham Joshua Heschel
2.Suggestion for the week:
The Book of Job is acknowledged to be one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written with a message that has universal meaning.If you want to know the way in which the Book of Job confronts the problem of suffering and what conclusion it reaches, you must read the story in its entirety.