The 16th Sunday of OT, Year B brings into focus the compassion of Jesus as the Shepherd-Messiah of Israel. It is for this reason that the Gospel selection from Mark 6:30-34 is associated with Jeremiah 23:1-6, a prophecy about the wise king from the Branch of David. The responsorial psalm for the passage is taken from Ps. 23 which speaks of the Shepherd who gives rest in green pastures and prepares a rich banquet for his sheep. Read [?external:http://biblista.albertesmeralda.com/mark6_30-34 this article before proceeding].
1. The selection from Mark 6:30-34 follows from the episode of Jesus sending out the Twelve. We don't know how long they were away but when they do return, Jesus tells them to take some rest. Mark tells us that the Twelve had not eaten yet. They will eat of course, but it would be when Jesus feeds them himself (see the following episode of the feeding of the multitudes, verse 35ff).
A [?note:http://servicioskoinonia.org/cerezo latin american artist] depicts this scene of Mark thus (click on the thumbnail for a bigger view):
- Reflect
- There is a well-known passage in Matthew that should readily come to mind when we read of Jesus inviting his disciples to rest:
Come to me all you that labor and are burdened,
> and I will refresh you.
Take up my yoke upon you, and learn of me
because I am meek, and humble of heart:
And you shall find rest to your souls.
For my yoke is sweet and my burden light.
The Good Shepherd gives repose among restful waters (cf. Psalm 23). Where do you find your rest?2. "...And they were like sheep without a shepherd". Consider this news item for a moment:
It all started with one self-destructive leap.
Shepherds eating breakfast outside the town of Gevas, Turkey, were surprised to see a lone sheep jump off of a nearby cliff and fall to its death. They were stunned, however, when the rest of the nearly 1,500 sheep in the herd followed, each leaping off of the same cliff.
When it was all over, the local Aksam newspaper reported that "450 of the sheep perished in a billowy, white pile" (those that jumped from the middle and end of the herd were saved as the pile became higher and the fall more cushioned). The estimated loss to the families of Gevas tops $100,000 an extremely significant amount of money in a country where the average person earns about $2,700 annually.
"There's nothing we can do. They're all wasted," said Nevzat Bayhan, a member of one of the 26 families whose sheep were grazing together in the herd.
Sam O'Neal, St. Charles, Illinois; sources: "450 Sheep Jump to Their Deaths in Turkey", washingtonpost.com (7-8-05)
The news item serves to illustrate how sheep without a shepherd can become self-destructive. It also serves to illustrate why there is a need for a shepherd and why, when Jesus sees the crowd, he felt [?note:pityandcompassion compassion.]
- Reflect
- In Numbers 27:17, we find Moses asking God to provide shepherds for his people so that there would always be someone who will guide them. The lack of such a shepherd is condemned by the prophets (cf. the passage cited from [?external:http://biblista.albertesmeralda.com/mark6_30-34 Ezekiel here]). When we were baptized, we began to share in the Lord's office as King, as leaders within God's people, to be its "shepherds". While Catholic sacramental language limits "shepherd" to those who have the priestly office, lay people are also considered "shepherds" especially within the context of their "kingly office" in family life, in politics and wherever they assume leadership roles. How do you exercise this kingly aspect of your baptism? How do you welcome this task as life presents it to you?
