Background – The Rejection at Nazareth
Once again the notes provided for Mk. 6:1 – 6 are helpful, http://www.usccb.org/bible/mark/6
As should be clear, the church during this year is asking us to focus on the Gospel according to Mark, the first written gospel and probably the source of the very word gospel.
If we look at the headings from Chaps. 4 and 5, we can put this passage into its Marcan context. Ch. 4 relates 3 parables in which the Marcan Jesus invites us to understand the meaning of the Kingdom of God in the parables of the Sower, of the Lamp, and of the Mustard Seed. Mark concludes this chapter in dramatic fashion telling of the mighty act of Jesus’ Calming of a Storm at Sea. In Ch. 5 he continues to reveal the mighty acts of Jesus in the Healing of the Gerasene, the Raising of the daughter of Jairus from death to life and the Curing of the Woman with a Hemorrhage. All of this ends in Nazareth! The very context conveys a meaning that could easy be missed if we are attentive only to the selected reading.
In this passage we also get a glimpse of the early church’s memory in part of Jesus’ life in Nazareth which tradition has added to in ways that capture our imagination. There is a truth here that transcends history and to root these developing traditions in history is both to do an injustice to the purpose of the Gospel and perhaps to miss both the Gospel and the tradition’s deeper meaning.
Our Questions
Our three basic questions can are meant to focus our reading / hearing. First who are the characters in this passage? By now we know that the “when” is complex and matters; there is the “when” of the story, the “when” of the author and his intended community, and our “when” of the 21st century, in our global world, in our nation, in our community, in our personal life. Ultimately, unless we attend to our “when” the good news [Gospel] remains an abstraction, and the light we think it shines more often than not is a continuance of our darkness. Finally, we are confronted by the question, what is the plot, the theme, the purpose of this passage.
The Reading – The Rejection at Nazareth [Mk. 6:1 – 6]
1He departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples.
2When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!
3Is he not the carpenter,* the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.
4Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.”
5 So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,* apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
6 He was amazed at their lack of faith.
Your responses, questions, and / or comments are welcomed. You can add them by clicking on the comment link at the end of this post With your input we can continue to delve into this passages meaning for us.
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