HOMILY FOR SATURDAY OF THE 2ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME [YEAR B]

HOMILY FOR SATURDAY OF THE 2ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME [YEAR B]

THEME: Jesus’ relatives were convinced he was out of his mind.

BY: Fr Deotacious Chikontwe SMA

READINGS OF THE DAY
1Samuel 1:1-4,11-12,17,19,23-27
Psalm 79:2-3,5-7
Mark 3:20-21

LITURGICAL COLOUR
GREEN

INTRODUCTION
Good morning my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate Saturday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time of Year B.

FROM OUR FIRST READING
In this morning’s first reading we have that very moving lament of David on hearing the news of the death of Saul, the king of Israel, and his son Jonathan. Saul had turned against David and had tried to have him killed, yet David wept at the news of Saul’s death because of the role Saul had played in the lives of the people as king. Saul’s son Jonathan was a wonderful friend to David and tried to protect David from his father’s anger and jealousy. On hearing of the death of Jonathan, David exclaims, ‘O Jonathan, in your death I am stricken. I am desolate for you, Jonathan, my brother. Very dear to me you were, your love to me more wonderful than the love of a woman’. The love of David and Jonathan is one of the great stories of authentic friendship in the Scriptures.

FROM OUR GOSPEL READING
Our gospel today is the shortest one in our liturgical calendar, just two verses. In this short gospel account, Jesus’ relatives are somewhat upset with Jesus. He is branded by them as somebody who is out of His mind maybe because He often misses His meals and needed rest after working hard all day long. And these alarm His relatives too. Sad to say, they just see a one-sided part of Him which is His activity of helping other people rather than helping Himself first, taking care of Himself, enjoying life, taking it easy, living for the moment, worrying only about His own family and not others, etc. just like what they do. They do not see Him late in the evening or in the wee hours of the morning, communing with His Father in prayer. But somebody said that they are somewhat upset, it is because on one occasion Jesus remarked that ‘a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household,’ (Matt 10:36).

CONCLUSION
Our first reading shows us that, The love of friendship is a special kind of love. At its best it gives us an experience of the Lord’s friendship with us. In John’s gospel, Jesus says to his disciples, ‘I no longer call you servants. I call you friends’. The Lord who befriended us by his life, death and resurrection and continues to befriend us as risen Lord, invites us to befriend one another as he has befriended us. At its most complete, friendship has a sacramental quality; it is a living sign of the Lord’s friendship with us.
The gospel reading teaches us that, Jesus did not always go where his family wanted him to go because he was subject to a greater authority in his life, and that was God’s authority. God’s purpose drove him and he was faithful to that purpose even when it brought him into conflict with those for whom he had the strongest feelings of natural affection. We, his followers, are called to remain true to the Lord’s direction, his guidance, his vision and values, even if that means for us what it meant for him, finding ourselves at odds with those who are nearest and dearest to us.
The Lord be with You.

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