Sunday Gospel Comment
Sunday Gospel Comment
Alberic Jacovone OSB
YEAR B
FOURTEENTH SUNDAY - 6.7.03
Ez 2,2-5; 2 Cor 12,7-10; Mk 6,1-6
Jesus' Family in Markıs Gospel
Introduction
Ordinary Church members, are deeply affected when faced with striking assertions
implying that Jesus may have had brothers and sisters. Todayıs Gospel
challenges us with this very sensitive area. Without taking anything from the
teaching of the Church, letıs explore some texts. The Gospels are no Oordinaryı
life of Jesus. In them, Jesusı facts of life -and for todayıs purpose, Jesusı
family- are presented in symbolic way, to impress on us the conviction
about who Jesus is: Son of God and Messiah. Mark talks about Jesusı relatives,
at the beginning (3,20-35) and the end (6,1-6) of ACT 2. Jesus has just arrived
in his hometown to preach and heal. The Torah-Teachers discredit Him, claiming
he is possessed by the devil, and Jesusı own relatives go along with them. They
think Jesus has gone mad and come to take hold of him. All in town are amazed at
Jesusı miraculous powers: isnıt he the carpenter, the son of Mary and
everybody knows his brothers and sistersı. To all these, Jesus responds by
naming who is part of his real family (those besideı) and who is not (those
outsideı): those who do Godıs will are in: jesusı brothers & sisters. In
todayıs Gospel, the people of Nazareth, take offence at Himı, while Jesus is
amazed at their unbeliefı. The very message they can never accept, is central
to the Gospel: Jesus is the Son of God. To stress that God is the
Father of Jesus, Mark on purpose never mentions Joseph. Where Matthew says that
Jesus is ³the Carpenterıs son², Mark says that Jesus himself is the
carpenter. As for Mary, Mark names her only once as mother of Jesus when the
four Obrothersı are also named: James, Joses, Judas and Simon. And while here
he talks about the four brothersı, in 15,40 he also states that James the
Youngerı and Joses were sons of another Mary, presumably not the mother of
Jesus. Writing years later, Matthew takes from Mark the story of Jesusı
brothers, but adds new insights to Jesusı identity. Instead of eliminating the
role of Joseph, he stresses it. Here Joseph plays an important role: through the
genealogy (1,1-17) and the virginal conception, Jesus is acknowledged as Josephıs
legal son (Ogives the nameı), and is inserted as Son of Davidı and promised
Messiah. Matthew concludes saying: ³Joseph did not have sexual relations with
Mary, until she gave birth to her son². (in Greek, the word untilı does not
infer that Joseph and Mary had children after Jesus). The question of Jesusı
brothers & sisters has been debated from the earliest years of Christianity.
Hegesippus (AD 150) records that James was the first bishop of Jerusalem and his
brother Simeon succeeded him. The Protoevangelium of Jamesı (2nd Century) says
that Jesusı brothers were from a previous marriage and Mary remained a Virgin
after the birth of Jesus. The same is implied in the writings from Nag Hammadi
library: James and Thomas are brothers of Jesusı but from different fathers,
presumably from Joseph. Early Church writers were divided into three interpretations:
Brothers of Jesus were full blood brothers (Tertullian and Eividius); or
children of Joseph by a previous marriage (Origen, Eusebius, Greg. of Nyssa); or
cousins of Jesus (Jerome, who defended the perpetual virginity of Mary and
argued that the word Oadelphosı means brother and cousin. Among modern
scholars, Protestants follow the first interpretation, while Orthodox and
Catholics follow the third. Lately, and Ecumenical taskforce has concluded that
in the NT this question cannot be resolved beyond doubt (Brown, Donfried,
Fitzmyer, Reumann).
______________________________________
