A Reflection on Mark 3:20-21
Jesus returns home, and immediately the crowds press in
with such urgency that He and His disciples cannot even pause to eat. His own
family, hearing of this and the growing controversy surrounding His ministry,
comes to take charge of Him. They say He is "out of his mind."
Consider the profound sorrow in this moment. The very people who knew Jesus
from childhood, who witnessed His growth in wisdom and grace, now question His
judgment. They observe the crowds, the intensity, the way He pours Himself out
completely for others, and they believe something has gone terribly wrong. Yet
what appears as excess to human eyes is actually the perfect expression of
divine love. Jesus reveals to us that when we surrender ourselves entirely to
God's will, when we allow His purposes to direct our every moment, others may
struggle to understand. They may believe we have lost our sense of proportion,
that our devotion has become unbalanced. But this complete offering of self is
precisely what our Lord asks of each of us.
Today’s gospel shines deep truth on true discipleship. Sincerely
wholeheartedly following Jesus will at times appear unreasonable or even
incomprehensible to those around us, even to those who love us most dearly.
When we faithfully pray the Holy Rosary each day, when we embrace penances that
others find perplexing, when we extend forgiveness that seems beyond reason,
when we choose chastity or charity or truth despite real sacrifice, we unite
ourselves to Jesus's own path. Our Blessed Mother understood this mystery more
deeply than any other person. At the Annunciation, her "yes" to God
meant accepting what would appear scandalous and impossible to the world.
Throughout the Joyful Mysteries, we contemplate Mary's embrace of the
incomprehensible, the virgin birth, the arduous journey to Bethlehem in her
ninth month, the three days of anguish before finding her Son in the temple.
She knew profoundly that God's ways transcend all human understanding. In the
Sorrowful Mysteries, we accompany Mary as she witnesses her beloved Son mocked,
scourged, and crucified, the supreme moment when Jesus's mission appeared as
utter foolishness to the world, yet was in truth the greatest wisdom and love
ever manifested.
The Holy Rosary itself draws us deeper into this sacred
pattern of heaven's wisdom appearing as folly to the world. Each mystery
invites us to contemplate moments when God's plan confounded human expectation.
The shepherds summoned by angels, the Magi following a star, Jesus in agony
while His apostles slept, these are not the ways of earthly prudence. They
reveal a God who empties Himself, who embraces vulnerability, who dies to
bestow eternal life. When we pray the Rosary with devotion, we are being formed
to see with God's eyes, to treasure what heaven treasures rather than what the
world celebrates. We ask Our Lady to teach us her trust, her willingness to
allow God's purposes to appear strange or excessive to others. Each bead
passing through our fingers reminds us that holiness often manifests in humble
repetition, in simple faithfulness, in practices misunderstood by those outside
the faith, just as Jesus's family could not comprehend why He would not stop
even to take nourishment.
Our Lord did not pause to defend Himself to His anxious
family in this moment. He simply continued in perfect obedience to the Father's
will. There is a profound peace in this, the peace of allowing God alone to be
our judge rather than constantly seeking to justify ourselves before others or
conforming to their limited understanding. As Catholics, we receive this same
peace through the sacraments, through prayer, through communion with the saints
who have walked this narrow way before us. Mary stands as our Mother and
perfect model, the first disciple who chose God's mysterious plan over human
comfort and comprehension. When we meditate upon the Glorious Mysteries, we see
where this trust ultimately leads to the Resurrection, to Pentecost, to the
Assumption and Coronation in heaven. What appeared as madness reveals itself as
glory. What seemed like a devastating loss becomes infinite and eternal gain.
Questions to Consider:
- When has your faithfulness to Jesus caused concern
or confusion among your family members or friends? How did you respond to
their worry with both charity and conviction?
- In what ways might you be holding back from
complete surrender to God's will because of fear of others' judgment? What
graces might you be refusing by seeking to appear reasonable to the world?
- As you pray the Holy Rosary, which mystery most
powerfully calls you to trust in God's wisdom beyond human understanding?
What does this mystery reveal about your own journey of faith?
- How does Our Lady's example of perfect acceptance
at the Annunciation strengthen you in your present circumstances? What
seemingly impossible thing might God be asking you to embrace with similar
trust?
- Jesus could not even pause to eat because of His
complete dedication to serving souls. What does this teach you about the
nature of divine love? Where in your own life is the Lord calling you to
more generous self-gift?
©2026 James Dacey, Jr., OFS
