Wednesday 4th Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel - Mark 6:1-6

Homecoming!

Nazareth Synagogue

Years ago, when I graduated from High School at the seminary, it was a weekend full of celebration and accomplishments; there was an outdoor party down by the lake and, of course, our graduation Mass and commencement for our little class of 13!  And then I went home for the summer.  But after I got home, I decided to attend the high school graduation ceremony of my former grade school classmates and friends.  BIG MISTAKE!  It did not go well.

What little greetings I got were short and not so sweet.  What little conversations there were tended to feel like I was back in 8th grade.  It was as if the last 4 years never happened and that I was still that naïve, nerdy little kid from grade school.  Not exactly the sort of homecoming I was expecting!

Ever had that experience of running into an old relative, someone who hasn’t seen you since you were little and they proceed to treat you like you were still that little child they used to play with? It’s as if, from their perspective, you never changed, you never grew up.  And when you try to tell them all that you have accomplished and the bright future you are working toward, they almost refuse to believe it – no, not my little boy!

Jesus travels home to Nazareth in today’s Gospel and it does not go well.  He begins to preach in His home synagogue, and it goes from bad to worse.  He is met with narrow-mindedness and preconceived notions of who He is.  They look at Him the way He was and not who He has become!  People have already made up their minds about Him and they are too stubborn to change their perception.  They thought they knew Jesus and they just couldn’t move beyond that outdated knowledge.  Unwilling to change, they are also resistant to faith!  They have closed their minds and hearts to the Good News.  Faith requires an open mind and an open heart, a willingness to listen and learn!

Jesus must have known this could have happened when He returned home.  He knew there was a real chance of rejection and closed minds.  And yet He still came; He still preached; He still hoped!  Isn’t the same true for all of us?  Somehow somewhere we encounter Jesus every day.  And every day Jesus hopes that we will open our minds and our hearts to His message, to His healing touch!

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