FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – CYCLE B – 2018 

      The first Reading taken from the Old Testament and the Gospel put in front of us the reality of   human suffering.  Job has a negative perspective without hope, the Gospel shows Jesus healing, thus giving back hope to those who suffer.    

      The second reading is the continuation of last Sunday’s reading. Paul offers the Gospel without cost.    

THE BOOK OF  JOB

Ø  It seems that in ancient times a man with this name existed, but this book is like a parable which speaks to us about the mystery of the human suffering, however the theme has a larger scope, it is about retribution and God’s justice.  

Ø  Process in the writing of this book: 

o   At the beginning it was a simple tale, written in prose, about a man called Job who suffered very much. (introduction and conclusion)   

o   Later   the main part of the work was added:  the friends’ dialogues, written in poetry. This part raises a revolutionary question for the faith of Israel about retribution.   (Job 3-31; 39-41)

o   Finally another author edits the work and scandalizes many with his thesis and, adds the monologue of   Elihú (Job 32-37). 

Ø   The Theological  Approach:  

o   The author of the second or central part of the book of Job dares to question the untouchable belief of Israel’s faith on retribution.  He who does good is blessed by God and prospers; he who is not faithful, the sinner, is punished by God.  

o   Job pretends to be without blame and good, but his sickness says that he has hidden sins that he does not want either to acknowledge or confess.  

o   The author through the dialogues presents in a great way another alternative, the thing is not so easy as they believe   

o   In other books of the Old Testament the authors present also this question, not always things go well for the just, and not always the things go bad for the sinner,  rather it seems that we experience the contrary.  Jer 31,29 y ss. Ez 18.

o   In fact, what the human being, represented here by Job, questions is the justice of God.   Not in itself but in the way it has been interpreted.   

Ø  What moved the community to write this book:   

o   It seems that behind this book we discover the questions raised within the people of Israel by their great sufferings during the Babylonian exile.   

o   On their return the prophets tried to nurture the faith of the people that had more and more doubts on their situation and their relationship with God.   

o   The books seems to reflect this crisis of faith, not only of the people in general, but also of the author. The book would be the result of years of struggle, questioning and prayer, until the moment when God allows himself to be known in a new way. 

o   The time of the composition of this book may be situated after the exile, maybe between the  VI and  V centuries before Christ.

o   To read this book is to enter into an exciting experience.   

FIRST READING  – Job 7:1-4.6-7

Ø  Today’s text is taken from the first session of dialogues between the friends and Job.   It is a fragment of the answer that Job gives to his friend  Eliphaz which goes from the beginning of chapter 6 to the end of chapter 7. 

Ø  Job, who is suffering physically, psychologically and spiritually describes his pain 

o   He sees  human life as a military service, or the life of a slave or laborer 

o   All these comparisons make us thing of a person who does not have the possibility to take decisions on his own life, but somebody else takes them for him or her, someone who is not a friend. 

o   He describe his nights and days full of darkness and pain.  

Ø  Job says how he sees his life  

o   As a shuttle on the weaver, thus are the days of Job, without any change, always the same.   

o   Job has lost hope; he has too many questions without answer, why has God done that to me, if I have always served him? Why does he abandons  me in the midst of silence and darkness without defending me? 

o   He sees his life like a  breath and he is convinced that his eyes will not see happiness anymore. God keeps silence and the human beings, his friends, want to interpret this silence.  

Ø  The tone of this reading is quite pessimistic and sad, but it reflects what happens to us when we are suffering, and in addition a suffering without meaning for us

SALMO RESPONSORIAL:  Salmo 146:1-2. 3-4. 5-6

R. (cf. 3a) Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
 Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
 He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
 

Ø  The psalmist sings God’s greatness and invites the assembly to do the same.  

Ø  God is great because he has rebuilt…  reunited the disperse…                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             heals the hearts… reaches out … humiliates the arrogant…  

Ø  God is great because he is the Lord of the universe, the creator who can count the number of the stars and know the name of each one.  

Ø  The psalmist is amazed and cries out “his wisdom has no limits.”   

Ø  This is the answer to the darkness of Job and also to our own darkness,  questions,  fears. 

Ø  I have read some days ago an article and something caught my attention, it says something like this: sometimes God seems not to respond to our petitions, but in reality he might be saying to us “wait a little, I have a better idea for you.” Only as time goes by we realize that he has been listening all the time, and then we feel a great joy.  

GOSPEL  Mk 1:29-39

Ø  We continue reading the swiping force of  Jesus’ evangelization, like the hurricane-force wind of Pentecost, opening new ways and giving new light to those who listen to Him. 

Ø  There three different moments or scenes in this reading:   

Ø  First:

o   Jesus exists the Synagogue, where he has cured the possessed man and whre the assembly said: “a new doctrine, taught with authority.”    

o   Jesus in company of his first disciples goes to Peter’s home. They talk to him about the Peter’s mother in law who is sick. He can heal, maybe he will cure her also.   

o   Jesus approaches the sick woman, takes her from the hand and raises her up. Here Mark uses the same word that he will use to describe the resurrection of Jesus from the tomb: He has been raised.     

o   Mark seems to tell us that this woman was healed in her whole being, she was made new, liberated not only from her sickness but from any other suffering.   

o   Once she is cured he starts serving them. This is the mission of all the followers of Jesus: to serve.     

Ø  Second

o   They people bring to Jesus those afflicted from many illnesses. 

o   He cures all, he liberates tham from they illness and from anything that might have them bound 

Ø  Third

o   At dawn Jesus goes to a deserted place to speak with God. How good it is for us also to do the same, to enter in communication with God who has created us, redeemed and sent to serve.  How do you want to be served today Lord?   

o   The disciples, who begin their process of knowing and following Jesus think that it is better to take care of those who seek him than to continue praying.  

o   Jesus gives them the first lesson: let us go to the other villages where there are more people to whom I have to preach and announce the good news.   

o   And Jesus continues his way fulfilling the mission He has been sent to do. What is my mission? Do I live it with my eyes upon the Lord to know how He wants me to fulfilled it?

CLARETIAN CORNER  

This short notice but compendious, without withdrawing a single point from the rule that the Lord was commanding me to write, filled my heart and soul with a holy joy, so much so that for a long while I could not control my tears, seeing the great work that the Lord was to perform.  In these few words that His Divine Majesty told me, he made me understand so many and great things about this holy soul, that as if I was out of myself. I think I loss the bodily senses, while the powers of the soul were occupied in admiring what the grace of God can do in a soul. I saw or understood, I do not know how to explain it, our Lord left to the judgment of his soul the interests of the church and as if of him depended to put to practice the Evangelical Law, and it seem to me that his Divine Majesty was telling him, “ I have given you grace for that “ I understood that this was very special grace that God bestowed only to the holy Apostles, and I saw that our Lord Jesus Christ was requesting it from him in a     way that I do not know how to explain. Venerable María Antonia París Foundress of the Religious of Mary Immaculate Claretian Missionary Sisters,  Autobiography 33

My father set me to work on every job available in his well-equipped little thread and textile factory. For a long time I and another young man were in charge of putting the finishing touches on the work of everyone else in the shop. Whenever we had to correct anyone, it upset me a great deal; yet I did my duty. I always tried to find something good to say about the piece of finished work. I would praise its good points, saying that this or that about it was very good but that it had such and such a defect and if these little defects were corrected, it would really be a perfect job.

I didn't know why I did things this way, but in time I came to see that it was the result of a special grace of kindness that the Lord had granted me. This is why the workers always took correction from me and mended their ways... Saint Anthony Mary Claret, Founder of rthe Religious of Mary Immaculate Claretian Missionary Sisters, Autobiography 33-34.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

CLARET, San Antonio María. Autobiography.

LOBATO FERNÁNDEZ, Juan Francisco, “Job”, en Comentario al Antiguo Testamento II, Casa de la Biblia Salamanca-España 1997.

PARIS, Venerable María Antonia. Autobiography