1/9/2017 – Tuesday of 1st week in ordinary time - Mark 1:21-28

     Today, we hear how Jesus spoke with authority to the crowds, as Jesus himself was the Word of God made flesh.  Jesus was even able to command the demons to obey him. This Gospel reading prompts us to ask ourselves if we approach the word of God and the teachings of Jesus with the same zeal and eagerness as the man with the unclean spirit who cried out to Jesus, respectful of Jesus' authority.  

         As I thought about who we see as the authority in our lives, I thought back to my days as a lay missionary in Ecuador, when I spent a couple of months in the capital city of Quito at our religious order’s provincial headquarters in that country, learning the Spanish language in preparation for my assignment in a mission site in the jungle.  The provincial of the order, Father Angel Lafita, used to quiz us lay missionaries in Spanish about the words that came from the readings in the mass in order to see how much we were learning and comprehending.  I remember one evening at the dinner table Father Lafita asked me if I understood the word “antojo” which was used in the psalm at mass that day.   I understood that the word “antojo” meant a caprice or a whim or a craving.  He asked me what the “antojos” or “whims” were in my life.  I thought for a moment, and then blurted out – “libros” – books.  He smiled at my answer, because he knew that I was always reading something, and that books were my craving and downfall.  He knew from my answer that I understood the meaning of that word.

         Well, when the crowds heard Jesus teaching in the synagogue, when they saw him draw a demon out of a man at his command, they recognized that Jesus was not just one of the common scribes in ancient Israel, but that he was a man that had an authority they had never seen before.  And if we are like these crowds, if we do indeed recognize that Jesus has authority - a very special, unique authority - how do we allow that authority to interact in our lives?  This authority has to be more than a whim, more than a caprice or craving or an impetuous impulse.  That authority has to be foundational as to how we truly live.  It is good for us to have a passion in life, something we enjoy doing that brings us joy.