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| “Jesus Casts our Unclean Spirit” by Gustave Doré, 1865 |
Reading 1: Sirach
1:1-10
All wisdom comes from the
LORD
and with him it remains
forever, and is before all time
The sand of the seashore, the
drops of rain,
the days of eternity: who can
number these?
Heaven’s height, earth’s
breadth,
the depths of the abyss: who
can explore these?
Before all things else wisdom
was created;
and prudent understanding,
from eternity.
The word of God on high is
the fountain of wisdom
and her ways are everlasting.
To whom has wisdom’s root
been revealed?
Who knows her subtleties?
To whom has the discipline of
wisdom been revealed?
And who has understood the
multiplicity of her ways?
There is but one, wise and
truly awe-inspiring,
seated upon his throne:
There is but one, Most High
all-powerful creator-king and
truly awe-inspiring one,
seated upon his throne and he
is the God of dominion.
It is the LORD; he created
her through the Holy Spirit,
has seen her and taken note
of her.
He has poured her forth upon
all his works,
upon every living thing
according to his bounty;
he has lavished her upon his
friends.
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Commentary on Sir 1:1-10
This passage
begins the Book of Sirach. Written in about 175 B.C., this sacred text’s
author, the son of Sirach, writes extensively about the Law of Moses and the
people's relationship to it. It is not considered to be part of the Jewish
Bible after the first century, and is not contained in the Protestant canon
either. The church has always considered it sacred, and it has been included in
the Catholic Canon since it was first established.
In these opening
verses, the author explains that the Wisdom of God is poured out on all God’s
creation through the Holy Spirit. Wisdom, the author notes, can come only from
God, and there is, of course, only one God. The wisdom spoken of here is God’s
external revelation of himself, present in all his creation.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm
93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
R. (1a) The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
The LORD is king, in splendor
robed;
robed is the LORD and girt
about with strength.
R. The Lord is king; he is
robed in majesty.
And he has made the world
firm,
not to be moved.
Your throne stands firm from
of old;
from everlasting you are, O
LORD.
R. The Lord is king; he is
robed in majesty.
Your decrees are worthy of
trust indeed:
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, for length of days.
R. The Lord is king; he is
robed in majesty.
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Commentary on Ps 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
Psalm 93 is a hymn of praise commemorating
Yahweh as king. The external revelation of God mentioned in Sirach 1:1-10 is
celebrated in this song of praise. The image of God’s throne on high, repeated
here, reinforces God’s omnipotence.
“'The Lord is king':
literally, 'the Lord reigns.' This psalm, and Psalms 47; 96-99, are sometimes
called enthronement psalms. They may have been used in a special liturgy during
which God's ascent to the throne was ritually reenacted. They have also been
interpreted eschatologically, pointing to the coming of God as king at the
end-time.”[4]
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Gospel: Mark
9:14-29
As Jesus came down from the
mountain with Peter, James, John
and approached the other
disciples,
they saw a large crowd around
them and scribes arguing with them.
Immediately on seeing him,
the whole crowd was utterly
amazed.
They ran up to him and
greeted him.
He asked them, “What are you
arguing about with them?”
Someone from the crowd
answered him,
“Teacher, I have brought to
you my son possessed by a mute spirit.
Wherever it seizes him, it
throws him down;
he foams at the mouth, grinds
his teeth, and becomes rigid.
I asked your disciples to
drive it out, but they were unable to do so.”
He said to them in reply,
“O faithless generation, how
long will I be with you?
How long will I endure you?
Bring him to me.”
They brought the boy to him.
And when he saw him,
the spirit immediately threw
the boy into convulsions.
As he fell to the ground, he
began to roll around
and foam at the mouth.
Then he questioned his
father,
“How long has this been
happening to him?”
He replied, “Since childhood.
It has often thrown him into
fire and into water to kill him.
But if you can do anything,
have compassion on us and help us.”
Jesus said to him,
“‘If you can!’ Everything is
possible to one who has faith.”
Then the boy’s father cried
out, “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
Jesus, on seeing a crowd
rapidly gathering,
rebuked the unclean spirit
and said to it,
“Mute and deaf spirit, I
command you:
come out of him and never
enter him again!”
Shouting and throwing the boy
into convulsions, it came out.
He became like a corpse, which
caused many to say, “He is dead!”
But Jesus took him by the
hand, raised him, and he stood up.
When he entered the house,
his disciples asked him in private,
“Why could we not drive the
spirit out?”
He said to them, “This kind
can only come out through prayer.”
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Commentary on Mk 9:14-29
In this selection from St. Mark’s
Gospel, the Lord encounters a “situation.” When he comes down the mountain
where Peter, James, and John had just witnessed the transfiguration of the
Lord, he discovers the rest of the twelve being challenged by scribes and
Pharisees because they cannot cast out a “mute spirit.”
Jesus’ reaction seems a bit
exasperated. He remarks on the faithlessness of the crowd (including the
Scribes and Pharisees) and proceeds to cure the boy. He then explains to the
disciples (possibly chastising them as well) that in such cases, cure can only
be effected through prayer. In some texts “fasting” is added to this account.
CCC: Mk 9:9-31 649; Mk 9:23 1504, 2610; Mk 9:24 162
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Reflection:
The Gospel tells a story of
what happens when people try to do something without enlisting God’s help. The son of Sirach explains in the first
reading that all wisdom (and grace) comes from God, and resides in God in
fullness. When the disciples, who were
not with Jesus as he was being transfigured and revealed to Peter, James, and
John, are confronted with a request to cure a possessed boy, they fail. Recall, Jesus already “gave them authority over
unclean spirits,” and sent them out
with successful results (cf Mark 6:7-13). They fully expected to
be able to cure the boy. When they
failed, it reflected poorly on their teacher, Jesus.
When Jesus
returns and finds them embroiled in an argument with the people (including the Scribes
and Pharisees), he recognizes the situation at once. First, the people who came with the boy did
not have faith that the boy could be cured (by God), and second, his disciples,
under pressure, had failed to ask God for assistance, and tried to accomplish
the task by human will alone.
In the Gospel
Jesus rebukes both groups, the crowd with: "O faithless generation, how long will I be
with you?” And later, privately, rebukes
the disciples with what must have been for them a pretty scathing testimony
from their teacher: "This kind can
only come out through prayer."
The implication was they had not been praying, they had forgotten that
grace and wisdom from God must flow through them if good is to be accomplished.
That same lesson is the one
we walk away with today. It is one about
which we need to be constantly reminded.
We are not asked to perform miracles on a daily basis. But we are confronted and challenged to
proclaim the Good News. When we try to
do this on our own, forgetting that it is only through Christ Jesus who left us
the Holy Spirit that this can be accomplished, we fall into the same trap as
the nine disciples who forgot to pray.
This then is our challenge
for today. That we be a people of prayer,
constantly asking God for aid, and glorifying his name though our actions. May all we do this day be a song of praise to
him.
Pax
[1]
The picture is “Jesus Casts our Unclean Spirit” by Gustave Doré, 1865
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and
is for private use only.
[4]
See NAB footnote on Psalm 93
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