Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
January 11, 2022
Daily Reading from the USCCB: Mark 1:21-28
Jesus teaches as one having authority. He commands unclean spirits and they obey him. They can’t resist his authority.
If authority is the power to demand a response, and if Jesus is clearly a person with authority, then Jesus has the right to demand a response from the crowd in the synagogue, and a response from us–a response to his teaching, a response to his offer of healing and salvation.
This is not to deny the love and mercy of Jesus. It’s rather to emphasize that Jesus is not one to be trifled with or disregarded. He has authority, and authority calls for response. Of course, not to respond is itself a response.
