Reflection for January 23, Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time: Mark 3:31-35

Gospel: Mark 3:31-35

The mother of Jesus and his brothers arrived at the house. Standing outside, they sent word to Jesus and called him. A crowd seated around him told him, “Your mother and your brothers and your sisters are outside asking for you. 

But he said to them in reply, “Who are my mother and my brothers? And looking around at those seated in the circle he said “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”

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Reflection:

In what way could we become relatives of Jesus? It’s when we do acts of love, mercy and compassion toward anyone in need. It’s when we help Jesus spread His good news of salvation to others most especially to those who have not heard yet of His gospel message. 

To do good to our blood relatives is already a given fact of life. We help them because we are connected with them by consanguinity or through common family tree. Jesus in the gospel wants to stretch further our acts of mercy and compassion He wants us not to limit these acts of mercy and compassion to our own family circle only. 

Say for example, what if Jesus would ask us, could you also give the same help to a stranger in need? The same help that you would normally give to your relative/s? This is very difficult to do: To give help to a stranger with the same amount of help that we would normally do to our blood relative/s. 

Nonetheless, this is the challenge for all of us if we want to be called a relative of Jesus: We must help anyone in need! In hindsight, why did Jesus said that whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother? Perhaps the purpose of which is to measure our desire to become a relative of Jesus. 

Come to think of it, who wouldn’t want to become a relative of Jesus? Of course we all want. Therefore, we must do good at all times to anyone and we must extend help to anyone for this is the will of God. – Marino J. Dasmarinas