Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary time Mk 6,1-6

Watch not to underestimate faith (Mark 6: 1-6)
Underestimate the faith, the Magisterium of the Church – nothing new under the sun, but it is not worth it.

A person can be blind and still have healthy eyes. He wants to avoid seeing.

In the short story, The Land of the Blind, H. G. Wells tells the experiences of a pilgrim who got lost and found himself in an unknown country. However, all its inhabitants were blind. They took their blindness for granted. They accept the pilgrim’s narration as unnatural because it goes beyond their comprehension, and they cannot accept it. They consider the pilgrim to be “sick” and decide to blind him, i.e., make him equal to them.

Even in the realm of faith, we can be blind; we do not have to believe, accept what should be self-evident, what is to our advantage, and reject it, we reject, says Jesus’ encounter with the natives in the Nazareth synagogue.

The natives were offended at him, and Jesus said to them, “The prophet is worshiped everywhere, but not in his country, among his relatives, and in his house” (Mark 6: 3-4).

This way, one could put it this way: it is easier to believe and love from afar than up close. Everything is so concrete nearby, people, things, and we come across them.
It is easier for us to believe in Jesus than for the people of Nazareth, at least as long as we believe only in the distant Jesus. It’s harder nearby. For example, to say “amen” in communion is easier for many than to answer the words “peace and brotherly love, let us be among us” by shaking hands with one another. And yet we know that in every brother, sister, at home, with our neighbors, in the workplace, there is God, and it is here on this, already concrete deed, that our faith twists, it becomes difficult.
The natives heard of Jesus doing a strange act. His teachings and actions reveal that he has a special power. And when he comes to the synagogue among them, the natives are amazed and ask, “Where is this? What is the wisdom he has received and the miracles that are done by his hands? ”(Mark 6: 2) They see – and do not see. They do not accept what they see. They are not happy that the one who lived among them for years is the expected and foretold Messiah, proving his power by word and deed. Vice versa. They act only humanly. They accept Jesus as one of them. They are offended. And Jesus can only say, “The prophet is worshiped everywhere, but not in his homeland, among his relatives, and in his house.” (Mark 6: 3-4) The Evangelist St. Mark, therefore, writes of Jesus’ further performance in Nazareth: “And he could not do any miracle there, except that he healed some sick with the laying on of hands. And he marveled because of their unbelief. ”(Mk 6: 5)

The misunderstanding in Nazareth is an example of how people confuse God and the extraordinary with the human and the natural. Even today, the teachings of Jesus have become commonplace, often failing the human one. Liturgy, the sacraments lose their meaning because they do not see in them a gift from God himself, but often only look at the weaknesses of the priest or those who regularly attend Mass or attend the sacraments at Mass. Funny? They don’t see! Although they say they believe in God, they do not act accordingly. Judges only by appearance. Elsewhere, they say, they go to church and approach the sacraments, visit other people, but not parents, siblings, neighbors. And the words of the mother, of the father, of the priest,… of a man, say nothing to them. Suddenly, they forgot what the natives in the synagogue had forgotten, but which every Jew knew, that God works everywhere and in everything, that God is not bound to anything special.
Saturday’s meeting of Jesus with the natives in the synagogue was nothing special. They received travelers, and the adult Jew could read and interpret the texts of the Scriptures. What was different about Jesus’ case? Jesus did not speak as such but spoke as sent by God, as God, and by word and deed, he witnessed the will of God. However, only those willing to respect this will, who want to be taught by God, can accept this. If there is a lack of willingness, even the most famous and learned will not be accepted. This was true in the time of Jesus and is still true today. Pupils and students slander and slander their teachers by asking them what they are entitled to and their duty. Parents are underestimated by adolescent children when they warn, admonish … They rebuke the priest when he announces the faithful’s duty. The words of Jesus are fulfilled: “If they persecuted me, they would also persecute you; if they have kept my word, they will also keep yours. ”(Jn 15:20). It is an encouragement not to worry about your helplessness if we meet resistance to faith, unwillingness to accept God’s words, to live the commandments. It is necessary for a believer who walks in Jesus’ footsteps and is unaccepted to be aware that unacceptable does not end his mission. It is necessary to realize Jesus’ words: “Then he went to the surrounding villages and taught.” (Mark 6: 6) You were not accepted today; try again tomorrow. Your son has not received you; his daughter will receive you. Don’t shut up!

Meeting infidelity is a common thing. Many are not convinced by knowledge, strength, power, or love. The situation in Nazareth is proof of that. The bias of those against God, the soul, eternal salvation, and all who are serious about God cannot discourage a believer from living and proclaiming the gospel according to his circumstances. Jesus also died for his natives, although they were not accepted as their Lord and God in the synagogue. It is right that after the first experience of rejection, non-resignation valid. Our mission is to help again by those who are reluctant to believe in Christ as their God, to help accept Jesus as our salvation. It is most difficult in one’s own family, among those with whom we grew up were brought up, with whom blood ties bind us.