Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while

 Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.  And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.  When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they all ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.

- Mark 6:30-46

Yesterday, our reading began by reminding us of the first apostolic mission:  they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.  Now King Herod heard of Jesus, for His name had become well known.  And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him."  Others said, "It is Elijah."  And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets."  But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!"  For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her.  Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife."  Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him.  And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.   Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.  And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you."  He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom."  So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?"  And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!"  Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter."  And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.  Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought.  And he went and beheaded him in prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.  When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.

Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.  And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  It is very interesting to me how often Mark's Gospel presents us with the successive events of a particular day, like little vignettes that give us glimpses into the lives of Christ and the disciples.  Here, Christ gives rest to His disciples.  My study bible says that He does so to show those engaged in preaching and teaching that they must not labor continuously, but that they must also take rest.  It reminds us that it's also in Mark's Gospel that Jesus teaches that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.

But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.  Once again, Jesus' great popularity is made evident.  We note that here Jesus is moved with compassion.  His effort to find rest for Himself and the disciples is interrupted not by an attitude of ascetic labor or duty, but rather sincere compassion.  This beautiful description of the people who seek Him out, they were like sheep not having a shepherd, tells us everything about the need that Christ is responding to.  He responds as a good shepherd, by teaching them many things, for this is their true need.  My study bible says that Jesus is often moved with compassion (see also Matthew 14:14, 20:34; Mark 1:41; Luke 7:13) teaches us that His power and authority are extended to those who suffer.

When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they all ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.  Tradition sees this miracle of feeding a great multitude of His people as an echo of the Lord's feeding of the Israelites in the desert (see Exodus 16).  It is also an image of the Eucharist introduced here in the middle of Christ's ministry, an idea we find expressed in John 6.  One interpretation of this passage teaches that the five loaves indicate the books of the Law (Genesis through Deuteronomy), which are broken open in Christ and thereby feed the universe.  The two fish represent the Gospel Book and the Epistle Book, the teaching of the fishermen.  My study bible adds a beautiful concept:  the gathering of the leftovers by the apostles shows that the teachings that the faithful are unable to grasp are nevertheless held in the consciousness of the Church.

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.   This particular event began with Jesus drawing the disciples aside for rest and for regrouping, to hear about their first mission on which they'd been sent out.  Here, He resumes His consistent return for rest in depth of prayer with our heavenly Father.  His example is for all of us -- as beginning and ending and punctuation of all our "works."

It's interesting to think about Christ's withdrawal to the mountain.  After all, He's in the world to bring His gospel message of salvation to all.  His work is healing, teaching, preparing His disciples to be apostles and to spread the mission of His Church in the world.  Some might wonder why He would even need to pray.  He's divine, after all, the only begotten Son of God.   Why, in the midst of this public ministry, would He need to withdraw alone to a mountain?  And why would He need to make such strong choices for seclusion and solitude in prayer?  Certainly this part of His ministry (as recorded for us in the Gospels) is a teaching for all of us.  If Jesus needs prayer, can you even imagine how much all of the rest of us need it?  What does Jesus get from this prayer?  Could it be a deeper relationship with the Father?  Does He get more firm in His purpose?  One thing we can remember is His struggle with temptation in the wilderness, a hallmark a the very first action of His ministry, right after His baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist, and the pronunciation by the Father that this is His beloved Son.  Mark tells us, "Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness" (see this reading). There, Jesus struggles with worldly temptations for the use of power, for glory, and for bypassing the Father's way, before embarking into the public for His ministry.  In all things, He responds by relying on the Father.  His solitude on the mountain teaches us that all the practices we can use to shore up our faith, to reinforce this ultimate reliance on God, are good for us.  If they are good for Christ, how much more do we need to do them?  Prayer is the way to re-orient ourselves to our faith, to purpose, to bring the rest of our troubles and conflicts for guidance and resolution.  Prayer roots us in the place where we draw the energies of mercy into our lives.  It builds up the pool of life we need to draw from.  Whatever we do, like Christ who has just performed one of the most spectacular signs of His divinity, we should begin and end with prayer.  Even if we need to put off the time when events are too pressing, we make time for this whenever possible.