WHO IS THIS MAN?

WHO IS THIS MAN?

Who is that man who has caused such a stir among the people? The things he says and what he does attract the attention of many. That man from Nazareth does not leave anyone indifferent, but it seems difficult to decipher who He really is. No one has spoken before as He does now. Today's gospel (Mark 3: 20-35) shows us how everyone has their own idea of who Jesus of Nazareth is. For his relatives he was

already crazy; for them it was not possible for him to dedicate himself to preaching the Kingdom of God, without taking care of the family (since they believed that Jesus had forgotten his mother). For others, for personal convenience they only see Jesus as the man of miracles, or someone who can magically solve a problem for them. For others, Jesus is a subversive, he disrupts public order with his ideas. It seems that no one finds the true identity of Jesus, even though he has spoken clearly about the Truth and manifested the mercy of God. What do they lack to understand who Jesus truly is? The confusion about the person of Jesus is so great that some go so far as to claim that Satan operates in Him. Jesus takes advantage of this confusion to give a catechesis on sins against the Holy Spirit. Not wanting to accept, nor recognize that God himself is acting in Him, and trying to attribute God's grace to Satan is a serious sin against the Holy Spirit, a sin about which Jesus will say "they will not be forgiven." Sins against the Holy Spirit are a serious offense against the merciful love of God; It is confusing the goodness of God, who is good in himself, with the lie and evil that is the devil. Finally, given the fact that his relatives, along with his Mother, were waiting for him outside the place where they were gathered, Jesus reveals the identity of his followers, because in them his own identity is revealed. “Who is my Mother and who are my brothers?” Jesus will say: “he who fulfills the will of God, that is my brother, my sister and my mother.” And with this phrase he does not deny his Mother, on the contrary, he exalts her, because she has been the first to accept the will of God, by assuming the mission that was announced to her through the mouth of the angel Gabriel. Like Mary, the Mother of the Lord, and so many others who have done the will of God in their lives, Christians also live the gospel in its fullness, bearing witness that Jesus Christ is the one sent by the Father, and is the Son of God. Amen.

Fr. Carlos Flores, OSA