And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts . . .

 

 Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. 

 

- Mark 2:23—3:6 

 

 Then He went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them.  As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office.  And He said to him, "Follow Me."  So he arose and followed Him.  Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, "How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?"  When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting.  Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?"  And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.  No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins."

 

 Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."   My study bible comments that under the new covenant, the food which was at one time not lawful for anyone to eat except for the priests is now freely given to all by the Lord of the Sabbath.  Jesus, the Son of Man, was prefigured by David when he gave the showbread to those who were with him.  It is unique to Mark's Gospel that we're told Jesus states "the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath."  The emphasis here is a continuation of the understanding that Jesus is the physician who goes where the need is greatest (see yesterday's reading, above).

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.   My study bible comments on Jesus' response to the hardness of the hearts of the Pharisees.  It says that righteous anger is a natural human emotion which is experienced in the face of sin.  It says that there is also anger that is certainly sinful (Matthew 5:22), but anger can also be God-given and proper to humanity (Psalm 4:4).  Christ's anger in this instance is in response to people who profess God but have such hardness in their hearts that they cannot rejoice in the healing of one of their brothers.  Their predictable response is to immediately plot with the Herodians (those who support the Roman rule of the house of Herod) how they might destroy Him.

The ruthlessness of power makes its appearance in today's reading, as the Pharisees go out to immediately plot with the Herodians against Christ, to find how they might destroy Him.  This is something we need to study and understand.  We need to think about how hard it is to discern God in the midst of the world.  That is, to discern God in the midst of the world where it looks like all power is only material, and those who hold powerful positions will brook no criticism or opposition even when it comes from what is holy, from God -- a world in which we may easily become incapable of making that discernment.  Christ acts with compassion:  perhaps if the Pharisees themselves could find compassion in themselves they would read this circumstance more clearly.  Perhaps even without understanding exactly who Jesus is, a true love of God in their own hearts, as opposed to hard-heartedness, would at least have allowed them to perceive the righteousness of Christ's behavior.  As it is, the "rules" they enforce so zealously are only used to bludgeon an innocent Man, and for the sake of their own positions and power.  Elsewhere we're told that Jesus says to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.  You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.  But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.  Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?  He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God" (John 8:42-47).  This is an illustration once again of Jesus' teaching regarding the two greatest commandments of the Law (Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-34, Luke 10:25-28).  Here, these men so protective of their position and authority cannot put God first wholeheartedly.  Their behavior toward neighbor reflects that failure to hold strongly the first great commandment, and so they fail in the second.  This is something we must emphatically take to heart in the world in which we live, in which political affiliation, or philosophy, or ideology, or some set of rules is meant to substitute for that first place in our hearts for God.  Regardless of the value of what is created by human beings, there is only one place reserved for wholehearted worship, and that place is filled not by a thing or a system but by a Person.  That Person (or three Persons in One) is love and offers us the root foundation in which to grow of love, truth, beauty, and goodness.  On this is rooted all the Law and the Prophets, and this is the word given to us by our Lord, the Person who is Truth ("I am the way, the truth, and the life" - John 14:6).   When we are tempted to put something else first, we are exercising a kind of hardness of heart that gives us blindness and darkness.  We will always be missing something without the heart in its rightful place.  This is how we open up to the light that is the life of human beings.

 

Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

Yesterday we read that in those days of Christ's ministry, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way, for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  My study bible tells us that a sign from heaven indicates a spectacular display of power, some overwhelming "proof" of Christ's divine identity.  It says that the time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs, the but these men are hypocrites, who have not recognized the signs which have already been performed because their hearts were hardened.  They ignored the works which were already happening all around them.  Christ seeks faith, not hardened hearts which demand to be convinced against their own willful denial.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"   My study bible tells us that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12), and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture, my study bible reminds us, "leaven" is used both positively (as in Matthew 13:33), and negatively, as Jesus uses it here.  In both cases, leaven is a symbol of a force which is powerful enough (and frequently subtle enough as well) to permeate and to affect everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8).  Let us note also that even the the disciples are susceptible to a lack of understanding, and possibly to the "leaven of the Pharisees."

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible says that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21), and so, therefore, Jesus leads the blind man out of the town in order to heal him -- so that the people would not scoff at the miracle, and in so doing, bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  It is very interesting that the text tells us the blind man was healed in stages.  My study bible says this indicates that the man  had only a small amount of faith, for healing occurs according to one's faith (6:5-6).  But even this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ.  My study bible adds that Christ's command not to return to the town symbolizes that we must not return to our sins once we have been forgiven.

Faith:  how do we think about faith today?  Over the course of the past several days and weeks, the world has watched a pandemic unfold.  We have various ways in which we can approach it, measures we can take, means to combat the virus.  And, of course, there are terrible and sad calculations of harm, loss, suffering, and death which have already resulted.  But let us for today consider the impact of our faith throughout this period.  First of all, it is the time of Lent, and Lent is always and at once a time of internal emphasis, a time of withdrawal for prayer and contemplation, but cutting back on the things which take up our time and energy and interest in order to focus more fully on the things of God.  It is a time for consideration of our own behaviors:  what we can do better, how we can more potently develop our own discipline and discernment.  It is a time to consider what our responsibility is in terms of our own behavior, and how we can improve.  This is also called repentance, for repentance indicates simply change, and change for the better.  It is a time to consider how we might shape up, and put into action the things to which we're called by God, and within the space of dialogue in our prayer time, both in corporate worship (such as it is in these days, possibly virtually and online) and in the private place where our Father in the secret place sees in secret (Matthew 6:6).  It is a time for the cultivation of both prudence and discernment.  It is a time when we watch what we say, what we watch, and the things to which we're willing to pay attention.  Most of all, we must try to cultivate our faith, if we pay any attention at all to the things discussed and which Jesus' actions and words teach in today's reading.  For today is a reading that particularly emphasizes the connection between the existence of our faith (and its quality), and the positive outcomes that we so desire.  For those without faith, life looks increasingly dire.  Material outcomes are always dismaying.  Potentials which are contained in what remains possible are highly likely to be distorted to the point of non-existence.  Hope is not something which a lack of faith puts much stock in.  And where is God's love and guidance to be found except in faith?  It is faith that encourages us to always keep trying, through all things, to not give up hope, to seek God's positive will and possibilities even in the midst of what is bleak, and to carry on with our proper discipline even when others seem to discourage all possible hope.  For our Lenten practices, let us be even more diligent in putting into place our discipline at this time, especially that of regular prayer.  St. John Chrysostom, in his famous Homilies on the Statues, given in a period of Lent in the fifth century, reminds us that at this time we fast from all kinds of things, and not simply food.  We fast from all the things that are unhelpful to faith and therefore to our mental discipline and courage at this time.  He said, "For let not the mouth only fast, but also the eye, and the ear, and the feet, and the hands, and all the members of our bodies."  He meant that we fast from envy, from spreading gossip, from going places where we should not be going, from grasping and avarice, and all the things we need to put a watch on for ourselves.  At this time, let us consider that, in addition to gossip, we should fast from dire prediction of woe or the fainthearted feeling that this will not pass.  Already there is good news in many places of the rates of epidemic infection dying down, new hospitalizations reduced, and possible helpful drugs tested.  Above all, let us remember that in our reading today, not even Jesus could do any good work where there was not faith present.  Even Christ takes away the blind man from the town in order to shore up the faith necessary for his healing.  Let us remember, perhaps especially, His warning to the disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.  This is the leaven that demands proof for faith, that demands to be convinced even as it offers endless rejections.   This is the leaven of the hard-heartedness that does not rejoice at healing, at possibilities for well-being, and quite possibly seeks failure in order to defeat hope and enact secret agendas that benefit from calamity.  Let us not, also, harden our hearts.  Let us pay attention and be vigilant!

They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God

 "While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:

"Lord, who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"

Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:

"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,
Lest they should see with their eyes,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

- John 12:36b-43

In our current reading, it is Holy Week.  Jesus has been speaking to His disciples and others who are present at the Passover, telling them that the Hour of glorification, the time of the Cross, has come.   In yesterday's reading, He told them,  "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?   'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour.  Father, glorify Your name."  Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."   Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered.  Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."  Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.  Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  This He said, signifying by what death He would die.  The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'?  Who is this Son of Man?  Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

  "While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.   This verse is repeated from yesterday's reading.  It reminds us that the time is short that Jesus is present with them in the world, and that our time -- right now -- is for a purpose and a choice.   In this same sense, our lives our short; to walk in the light (v. 35), to believe in the light, is to have a particular choice and direction, and to become more "like Him."

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:   "Lord, who has believed our report?  And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"  Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:  "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them."  These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.  Jesus quotes two passages from Isaiah's prophecy:  53:1 and 6:10.  St. John Chrysostom comments here that Isaiah's prophecy does not mean that God causes spiritual blindness in those who otherwise would have been faithful.  This is a figure of speech in Scripture that simply reveals God as giving people up to their own devices (see Romans 1:24, 26).  To say that He has blinded their eyes is to say that God permits their self-chosen blindness (my study bible suggests a comparison here between Exodus 8:15, 32 and Exodus 10:20, 27).  People did not become blind because God spoke through Isaiah.  Rather Isaiah spoke because he foresaw their blindness.   John writes that Isaiah saw His glory and spoke of Him:  Isaiah's prophecy was written about 700 BC (see Isaiah 6:1); his prophecy speaks of Christ many times throughout its length.

Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.  We know that the raising of Lazarus happened among witnesses who'd come from Jerusalem and who were of the ruling parties and classes.  Here John tells us that even among the rulers many believed in Him.  But the Pharisees plot against Him, and they fear the Pharisees.  My study bible cites the commentary of Chrysostom, who says these rulers are in reality the worst of slaves:  they are enslaved by the opinions of men (that is, of human beings as opposed to God).  This keeps them from leading as God would have them lead.

To love the praise of men more than the praise of God is a great moral failing.  It's all too human, unfortunately.  But the capacities that we truly have for leadership don't come from kowtowing to popular opinion, or from being afraid of what others think when our own relationship to the light tells us something different -- when we know there is a better way.  True leadership is the capacity to truly see and hear, to choose to walk in the light.  I do not believe this applies only to religious leaders, but to leadership quality in all persons.  We often must make choices in which the real question we face is whether or not we can be more guided by the praise of God than the "praise of men."  Jesus spoke in yesterday's reading (see above) about glorifying God's name.  Jesus' hour of the Cross is His hour of glory (12:23).   What He asks us to do by walking in the light is to follow Him, to make the praise of God our priority.  This is true leadership quality, and it belongs to all human beings.  We may not all find ourselves in particular places of leadership with formal titles in the world, but we are each capable of seeking to walk in the light, as Jesus puts it, and becoming "sons of God."  To choose the priority of loving God and loving the praise of God more than the praise of men is to choose a kind of illumination as the direction in which we walk in life, and to grow in that light.  This is growth in "God-likeness."  Genesis tells us that we were made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27).   To walk in the light that Christ offers is to grow in that likeness, and to reflect God's light in the world, to glorify God through our own choices and discipleship (Matthew 5:14-16).   The decisions and choices that we make are each important, and Jesus emphasizes the time.  He is about to leave them; the light is with them now.  What we choose today is always going to determine the path we're on, the direction we're going.  In chapter 14, Jesus will teach, "I am the way, the truth, and the life."  That word for "way" in the Greek also means road.  We choose the road, the path -- we're headed somewhere.  When Jesus speaks of walking in the light, when John writes about choosing the praise of God rather than the praise of men, we're asked to consider which way we're going to choose, which way we take.  Jesus is telling us, the time is short, and His is the way, the way we need to choose toward a particular kind of goal and growth, to become sons of light.  Those without light are blind, and their hearts are hardened (without understanding).  What matters is what we choose.  

How is it you did not understand?

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you did not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

Yesterday, we read that at this point in Jesus' ministry, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation."   A sign from heaven would be some spectacular kind of display of power, something that will "convince" others to believe, beyond a doubt.  But this isn't the way that faith works, at least not the kind of faith that Jesus wants people to have in Him.  That's not the kind of trust that faith implies, and not the type of relationship Christ offers.   Love and trust work in other ways.  In addition, we already know the signs that are happening within the ministry:  the healings and His miraculous feeding of the many in the wilderness.  What the religious leadership wants is to define the terms in which Christ would be recognized, to frame His ministry in their vision of what His holy power and authority is and how it should work.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you did not understand?"  My study bible explains that "the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12) and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture, leaven is used both positively (as in Matthew 13:33) and negatively, as it is here.  In either case, leaven symbolizes a force powerful enough (and often subtle enough) to permeate and affect everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8)."  Again, Mark's Gospel repeatedly seems to give us hints as to how Jesus is thinking and what He is thinking.  Here, Jesus is rather incredulous as to why His own disciples still do not perceive the miraculous nature of the feedings in the wilderness, and instead believed that Jesus' real concern in remarking on the "leaven of the Pharisees" was with the fact that they hadn't brought bread!

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible explains that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (see Matthew 11:21).  Therefore, Jesus leads the blind man out of the town in order to heal him, so that "people would not scoff at the miracle and bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  It adds that the fact that the blind man was healed in stages indicates a small amount of faith, because healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6).   But a little faith was enough -- and it increased with the touch of Christ.  My study bible also notes that Jesus' command not to return to the town symbolizes that we mustn't return to our sins once we've been forgiven.

 Of course, the first thing we notice about today's reading are all the parallels in the stories.  The Pharisees are surely blind to what Jesus has been doing in His ministry.  In Monday's reading we read about a deaf and mute man who was healed, and about the attendant "publicity" which Jesus didn't want.   (He commanded them not to tell others, but of course, "the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.")  The healing of the deaf and mute man is a sign of the Messiah, as proclaimed by Isaiah, and today's reading confirms yet another one of those signs -- that "the eyes of the blind are opened" (see Isaiah 35:5-6).   So the Pharisees, in demanding a great sign of proof of identity and authority from Jesus, are also showing a great blindness themselves.  And then there are the disciples, who take Jesus' remark about the need to "beware the leaven of the Pharisees" and decide that He must be upset because they'd forgotten to bring bread with them.  It's really amazing to read Jesus questioning His disciples regarding the two feedings in the wilderness.  Don't they remember how He fed five thousand on one occasion?  Or more recently, when He'd fed four thousand -- with just a few loaves and fishes that were on hand?  How is it they don't know what He's talking about?  Don't they have eyes to see?  Don't they have ears to hear?  Don't they remember?  How is it they didn't understand?  Once again, it's remarkable to consider all the glimpses that Mark gives us into Jesus' thinking.  He's baffled by the lack of understanding and recognition even in His disciples.  There is a lot of blindness going around!  And so, then we come to His tremendous healing of the blind man.  We have to understand what kind of powerful and potent sign this really is of the presence of the Kingdom, and the Messiah in their midst.  But this isn't a kind of overwhelming sign in which Jesus would come into the world and "prove" to everyone who He is.  His power doesn't work that way; His power works via faith, and that's the key, really, to understanding what all of these intersecting threads are really about.  What's happening with the faith of the Pharisees, or how about His own disciples, whose hearts are still too hardened to understand about the feedings in the wilderness?  The blind man is taken out of the town, because (as my study bible explains) there just isn't enough faith there for Jesus to do His holy work.  Rather than creating some overwhelming sign for the world to be convinced, Jesus takes this man away from the town.  And then his healing comes in stages.  "I see men like trees, walking" is a sign of growing awareness, yet still not clear sight.  It's the way we are when we can't quite grasp something, but we edge a little closer even though we don't have the full picture.  And it's the great metaphor that makes the difference for us between the people of the town who have no faith, the Pharisees who demand a sign -- and the disciples.  The disciples have a little faith.  There are things that even Jesus finds hard to grasp that they haven't understood yet.  But they are on a road going somewhere.  They have started the journey of faith.  They're like this man who can't quite see, and can only make out "men like trees, walking" -- something that doesn't make much sense at this point.  But "a little" faith is the great difference here; with "a little" we are on our way somewhere and we have a chance to go further down that road and truly see where He is going and where He is leading.  But it takes discipline and persistence.  It also takes the courage to steer clear of those who'd seek to destroy that faith, and to persist in the commands of the Teacher.  That's the lesson we take for the day, the difference between a little faith and no faith.  Remember the parable Jesus gave us of the mustard seed, or the first parable we were given, that of the sower.  What really matters is what we do with the seed of "a little" faith, and how we continue on the journey with the Teacher, the One who's sown the seeds.  Are we ready to take the steps we need today?  Can we follow His teaching in discipleship?

They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God

"While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:

"Lord, who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"

Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:

"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,
Lest they should see with their eyes,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him. Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

- John 12:36b-43

In our current readings, it is Holy Week in Jerusalem, the last week of Jesus' earthly life.  Yesterday, we read that as He understood the Sanhedrin planned to kill Him, Jesus said, "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?  'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour.  Father, glorify Your name."  Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."  Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered.  Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."  Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.  Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  This He said, signifying by what death He would die.  The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'?  Who is this Son of Man?"  Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

 "While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.  In yesterday's reading, we wrote commentary that discussed how we can be sons or children of light.   Jesus clearly refers to Himself as the light, and He's indicating to those who will follow and have faith in Him that He will be with them in the world just a little longer; He is soon departing.  They must treasure what He's offering while they still have a chance to accept it, while the Light is in the world.

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:  "Lord, who has believed our report?  And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"  This quotation is from Isaiah 53:1.  It is near the time for Jesus' mission into the world to be over.  Will He find faith among the people?  He has many followers, but there are those who reject, who plot now to kill Him.  Faith is the key here to our understanding, and to their response.

Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:  "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them."  This quotation is from Isaiah 6:10.   My study bible says, "According to St. John Chrysostom, Isaiah's prophecy does not mean God causes spiritual blindness in people who would otherwise have been faithful.  This is a figure of speech common to Scripture revealing God as giving people up to their own devices (as in Romans 1:24, 26).  What is mean by He has blinded is that God has permitted their self-chosen blindness (compare Exodus 8:15, 32 with Exodus 10:20, 27).  They did not become blind because God spoke through Isaiah, but rather Isaiah spoke because he foresaw their blindness."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.  My study bible tells us that Isaiah . . . saw His [Christ's] glory in about 700 BC (Isaiah 6:1) and spoke of Him in many places throughout his lengthy prophecy.

Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.  A note says that "these rulers, according to St. John Chrysostom, are in reality the worst of slaves in that they are enslaved by the opinions of men.  This keeps them from leading as God would have them lead."

What does it mean to be healed?  Surely, here, we are speaking of a spiritual kind of healing, and one that affects one's whole life.  To be spiritually blind is to be disconnected from the things of God, particularly where God's call is leading you away from what is conventional to you, and into a new aspect of faith so that one evolves their own spiritual understanding.  To be blind to this call, to the ones who may be "crying in the wilderness" (in the words of Isaiah and of John the Baptist who also quoted from Isaiah in his mission to prepare the way for Christ), is to be blind to our own life's potentials, to stunt our growth in many ways, and to fall behind.  This is a voice calling us to something new, just as prophecy reveals something new, beyond our own grasp of things.  To be healed from spiritual blindness isn't just to have spiritual sight (or hearing) restored.  It means we open up to things greater than our own present understanding so that, indeed, our whole lives may be affected, may be healed.  To be healed is ultimately to be reconciled to God, to be in the place where God calls us to full relationship, so that we may be restored to the fullness of life that Christ promises.  Any form of repentance or "change of mind" necessarily means a change of oneself and one's life, at least in some aspect to which God calls us beyond our own current boundaries and ways of thinking.  To be healed truly means to be open to God, and to all those ways in which we may be called by God that ask us to change in some way, to "change our minds" (the literal meaning of the Greek word for repentance), to grow beyond our own present limits, and thereby - at least in some sense - to change our lives, to let His abundant life in and do what it will in ours.  This is what it is to be healed.  But if we refuse, if we have no spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear and to perceive with, then God does not force His way on us.  We are allowed to stay where we are, where we may decide we prefer to be.   In today's reading, the evangelist makes it clear just how that happens in this story of the rejection of Jesus.  There are many among the leadership who believe, but they are afraid to go against the Pharisees, and they are afraid of being put out of the synagogue.  Why, really?  Because they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.  And that's the great test of courage, and of faith, and of the willingness to accept most particularly spiritual truth.  All kinds of truth and justice may fit right into this understanding, no matter what it is that we may be called to accept, or what it is we may stop our eyes and ears from perceiving.  But it all starts with the One who is the way, the truth, and the life.  All truth - regardless of what we may categorize it as - begins with the spiritual truth of God.  Justice, compassion, mercy, and opening our eyes to what truth is even if it takes us away from what we already think we know -- all these things start with the One who is truth; whose identity is ultimately a mystery that calls us forward, and far, far beyond our understanding.  That's how we really need to be healed, and that's what we miss when we are deaf and blind.  Throughout the Old and New Testaments, we are given the understanding of eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear (see all references on this page).  Jesus says over and over again, "He who has ears, let him hear!" -- a quotation that also appears many times in the Revelation (see references here).   So, it all comes down to this:  What do you love more, the praise of other people, or the praise of God?