So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them

 

 Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once.  So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her.  And she served them.  

 

At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed.  And the whole city was gathered together at the door.   Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him. 

 

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.  And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him.  When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."  But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."  And He was preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons. 

 

Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."  As soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.  And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once,  and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."  However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.

 

- Mark 1:29-45 

 

 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe in the gospel." And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.  Then Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men."  They immediately left their nets and followed Him.  When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother who also were in the boat mending their nets.  And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.  Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.  And they were astonished at His  teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.  Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit.  And he cried out, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him.  Then they were all amazed, so that the questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this?  What new doctrine is this?  For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him."  And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee. 

 

  Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once.  So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her.  And she served them.  Passages such as this in the Gospels (see also Matthew 8:14-15, Luke 4:38-39) and 1 Corinthians 9:5 (in which Peter is called Cephas) show us that St. Peter was married.  My study Bible comments that the Lord's healing miracles are diverse.  Here, He heals by touch.  Elsewhere, such as in rebuking the unclean spirit in yesterday's reading (see above), He heals with a word.  This healing of St. Peter's mother-in-law  is immediate and complete; others are gradual (Mark 8:22-25) or they require the cooperation of the person healed or of his loved ones (Luke 8:54-55).  All of Christ's miracles or signs (the word used in St. John's Gospel) manifest His redemption of ailing humanity.  In the case of St. Peter's mother-in-law we must recognize that her serving this early ministry of Christ is a restoration of her place in the household, as one who serves Christ.  In modern language and culture, we might fail to recognize that this is an honored place.  The word translated as "served" is διακονέω/diakoneo, from which we derive the English word "deacon."  In effect she takes her place one who ministers to Christ.

 

 At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed.  And the whole city was gathered together at the door.   Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.  Once again, the Gospel emphasizes that Jesus' messianic identity is to be kept a secret; therefore He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.  See also yesterday's reading and commentary.  

 

 Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.  And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him.  When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."  But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."  And He was preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons.  My study Bible comments that here Jesus sets forth for us an example of spiritual life.  Although He was God incarnate, he prayed continually, and often found a solitary place to be freed from distraction -- despite everyone's need of Him.  My study Bible notes that the Lord's ministry comes forth from His communion with the Father and the Holy Spirit and flows to people in their needs.  His praying in the morning teaches that we must put as first priority our commitment to God, and only then we will be equipped to properly serve others.

 

 Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."  As soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.  And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once,  and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."  However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.  The biblical law concerning leprosy is found in Leviticus 13; 14.  In Deuteronomy 24:8 we may find the requirement for purification of lepers and leprous houses, a duty which was entrusted to the priests.  My study Bible explains that leprosy was considered a direct punishment for sins, and as lepers were unclean, they weren't permitted to live in community or to worship in synagogues or the temple.  To touch the unclean was forbidden (Leviticus 7:21), but Jesus touched the leper, expressing His compassion, and showing that Christ is not subject to the Law but is over it.  To the clean, my study Bible notes, nothing is unclean (see Romans 14:14; Titus 1:15).  

 

 What do we make of St. Peter's mother-in-law, who, upon her immediate healing by Jesus, being lifted up by Him, served Jesus and His disciples in their family home?  This word used for her act of serving, as noted above, is the basis for our word in the Church for those who serve, deacon.  Essentially we can read that she is ministering to Christ's ministry, to Him and to His first called disciples in her home which would become the ministry headquarters for Jesus.  It tells us a kind of story of the traditional roles of women in the Church, as it was women who ministered to the ministry, so to speak, by supporting it out of their own resources.  In Luke 8, we read these women:  "Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance" (Luke 8:1-3).  At the Cross, St. Matthew tells us quite literally:  "And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering [my italics] to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons" (Matthew 27:55-56).  So, just as these women (especially Mary Magdalene) would also become known as apostles to the apostles after they are the first to see the risen Christ and so spread the news to the apostles of Christ's Resurrection, during His earthly ministry, they are "ministers to the ministers," if you will.  In a modern context, we are tempted to equate serving with a diminished status, but for these women this is not so.  Their roles are indispensable.  Without them, Christ's ministry could not have been supported and carried on as it was; they are an integral part not only of His ministry, but of the entire story of salvation.  Without them, events would not have unfolded as they did, for these women went even to His tomb to anoint and care for His body, even when the apostles were in hiding.  Thus, just as they literally supported His ministry, they were the first to hear, believe, and proclaim the Resurrection -- see Luke 24:1-10.  Theirs are not simply secondary roles available to women in a society in which women had diminished status.  These are roles given through the spiritual reality of Christ's ministry, which these women filled with strength, resourcefulness, resilience, and a kind of courage that at time surpassed that of the apostles.  Let us not make the common present assumption that because they served, their roles are not as honorific as were the men's.  One would consider that a misreading and misunderstanding of what is being communicated to us in the Gospels, and what a tremendous honor they had to serve God in this integral and essential way.  Moreover, this would be a neglectful understanding of the impact which Christ's ministry and specifically His treatment of women would have on the whole of society and in every place in which Christianity became practiced; those effects are undeniable.  A woman's soul is essential to the salvation plan of Christ as any man's, and this is made clear through His ministry.  The many early martyrs in the Church who were young women who chose not to marry as their families demanded, but to claim their soul's redemption even if it meant death is, in fact, testimony to this.  Today, of course, because of the effects of Christianity on culture and history, our societies differ from Christ's immediate contemporaries, and so new questions arise for the role of women in the Kingdom and in ministry.  But let us not project upon the past and diminish these women's roles and their powerful sanctification as embraced by Christ and enshrined in the Church as God's work in the world.  Let us not apply a worldly standard to the truth of the truly counter-cultural reality of Christ, for whom His followers participated in a Kingdom which rendered them in the world but not of it.