Message of Abbot Paul - Tuesday 11th January
Message from Fr Paul for Tuesday, 11th January 2022
I write my daily message this evening, by which I mean Monday evening, as I always write my message the previous evening for the day ahead, with a weight lifted from my shoulders. When we took Toby to the vets for his 5.30 appointment, we couldn’t be sure that what we saw was, in fact, the case. The wound appeared to be healing well, and that is exactly what the vet confirmed. She was really pleased with him after giving him a thorough examination. On Friday she will remove his stitches. We were all relieved and you could clearly see the relief written on Toby’s face. This time we made it! Thank you for your prayers. The road to full recovery remains a long one and will probably include some physiotherapy. That will be fun!
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Today we continue our reading of Mark, (Mk 1: 21-28), where we find Jesus at Capernaum with his disciples. Mark writes: “Jesus and his disciples went as far as Capernaum, and as soon as the sabbath came he went to the synagogue and began to teach. And his teaching made a deep impression on them because, unlike the scribes, he taught them with authority.” That he should be invited to teach in the synagogue would suggest that Jesus was already known for the quality of his teaching and had received some schooling or training to prepare him for this. Already the congregation recognises his qualities and the power of his words. He possesses an authority that the scribes lack. But Jesus does more than teach, for we read of the first miracle recorded in Mark, a man who is healed of an unclean spirit. This is what he tells us: “In their synagogue just then there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit and it shouted, ‘What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus said sharply, ‘Be quiet! Come out of him!’ And the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and with a loud cry went out of him. The people were so astonished that they started asking each other what it all meant. ‘Here is a teaching that is new’ they said ‘and with authority behind it: he gives orders even to unclean spirits and they obey him.’ And his reputation rapidly spread everywhere, through all the surrounding Galilean countryside.”
What was the man with the unclean spirit doing in the synagogue? Did he always attend or was he there because he knew that Jesus was also there? It is interesting to note that the unclean spirit recognises Jesus to be the Holy One of God: who is holy but God alone? Jesus with the voice of authority orders the unclean spirit to be quiet and come out of the man and the spirit obeys, throwing the man into convulsions. We are told no more about the man or about the spirit. The account concentrates only on the reaction of the congregation, who are astonished and don’t quite know what to make of it all. The teaching of Jesus is new as it has the power to bring about change, to bring about a new creation. The man, although he is no longer mentioned, is born again to a new life. He is redeemed, he has experienced salvation. In our short Gospel passage the word authority, ἐξουσία in Greek, is used twice. It is used over a hundred times in the New Testament and in the Gospels usually refers to Jesus’ power to forgive sins. What a wonderful passage this is. Let us pray that Jesus will exercise his authority over us and heal our bodies and souls, above all forgiving us our sins. Amen.
