Meditation on This Sunday's Gospel

The Readings for Sunday, June 20, 2021:

First Reading: Job 38:1-11

First Reading (Semi-cont.): 1 Samuel 17:[1a, 4-11, 19-23] 32-49

First Reading (Alt.): 1 Samuel 17:57--18:5, 10-16 (Semi-continuous)

Psalm: Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32

Psalm (Semi-cont.): Psalm 9:9-20

Psalm (Alt.): Psalm 133 (Semi-continuous)

Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13

Gospel: Mark 4:35-41


This Gospel may be one where we feel superior to the disciples. How could they be so lacking in faith? But those of us who feel superior may never have been through a storm, either a real one or a metaphorical storm. We may not have felt that threatened.

Maybe we can relate to those disciples in this week's Gospel. The boat is taking on water. We're sinking. We'll die out here in the middle of this lake. It was bad back there with the crowds, but we don't want to perish this way.

And so, like the disciples, we call out: "Where are you God? Don't you care about us, Jesus?"

Look at the response of Jesus in this passage. Many theologians have noted that he doesn't mock them for their fears. Their fears are real and valid. But he asks them why they're letting their fears get the best of them. It's as if he's saying, "I'm right here. I'm with you. Have you forgotten what is possible when I'm in your boat?"

And then, he calms the storm.

Just because we're believers, that doesn't mean that we will never experience storms. God is not that kind of insurance policy.  Hurricanes wipe out believers and non-believers alike.  The terror of our current wave of gun violence is how random it is, taking out people of all faiths.  Strangers may help us or strangers may hurt us--it has always been this way.

We will, and we will likely be afraid. But Jesus assures us that even though we might feel alone, we are not alone. The storms will come, and storms will go. But God is always there, with us, in our little boats.  God is there on the shore.  God is in the storm and the waves.

But let's not wait until the boats of our lives are swamped by the seas. Let's reach out to God on the sunny days too.

These Gospel stories show us a God who wants to be part of our daily lives--to go fishing, to take naps, to share meals and stories and travels.  God is there to delight in our pictures, in our loaves of bread, in our butterfly gardens; God wants to sing a new song with us, in a key we've never considered before.

What wonderful news!