DAILY GOSPEL COMMENTARY: “WHO IS MY MOTHER?” (Mt 12:46–50).

DAILY MASS, GOSPEL AND COMMENTARY:
“WHO IS MY MOTHER?”
(Mt 12:46–50).

Gospel of Tuesday, 16th week in Ordinary Time,
Mt 12:46–50

While Jesus was speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers appeared outside, wishing to speak with him. Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, asking to speak with you.” But he said in reply to the one who told him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

Gospel Commentary from the Navarre Bible, Commentary to the Gospel of St. Matthew (with permission).

• The true kinsmen of Jesus
  • 46-47 “Brethren”: ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and other languages had no special words for different degrees of relationship, such as are found in more modern languages.
    • In general, all those belonging to the same family, clan and even tribe were “brethren”.
    • In the particular case we have here, we should bear in mind that Jesus had different kinds of relatives, in two groups — some on his mother’s side, others on St Joseph’s. Mt 13:55-56 mentions, as living in Nazareth, James, Joseph, Simon and Judas (“his brethren”) and elsewhere there is reference to Jesus’ “sisters” (cf. Mk 6:3).
    • But in Mt 27:56 we are told that the James and Joseph were sons of a Mary distinct from the Blessed Virgin, and that Simon and Judas were not brothers of James and Joseph, but seemingly children of a brother of St Joseph.
    • Jesus, on the other hand, was known to everyone as “the son of Mary” (Mk 6:3) or “the carpenter’s son” (Mt 13:55).
  • The Church has always maintained as absolutely certain that Jesus had no brothers or sisters in the full meaning of the term: it is a dogma that Mary was ever-Virgin (cf. note on Mt 1:25).
• 48-50 Jesus obviously loved his Mother and St Joseph. He uses this episode to teach us that in his Kingdom human ties do not take precedence.
  • In Lk 8:19 the same teaching is to be found. Jesus regards the person who does the will of his heavenly Father as a member of his own family. Therefore, even though it means going against natural family feelings, a person should do just that when needs be in order to perform the mission the Father has entrusted to him (cf. Lk 2:49).
  • We can say that Jesus loved Mary more because of the bonds between them created by grace than because he was her son by natural generation: Mary’s divine motherhood is the source of all our Lady’s other prerogatives; but this very motherhood is, in its turn, the first and greatest of the graces with which Mary was endowed.

VIDEO COMMENTARY ON TODAY’S GOSPEL

TOPIC: ARE YOU LONGING FOR FAMILY?

In today’s gospel reading, Mary and the family members of Jesus arrive as Jesus is speaking to a crowd. When Jesus is told they are looking for Him, He tells His followers, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” He points to His followers and he says, “Here are my mother and my brothers.” When you read this passage, you may get a sense of disrespect by Jesus for his blood family. But Jesus does not reject His family – for it would be rejecting His own teaching of unconditional love for all. He emphasizes though that commitment to God through Him is what makes one a member of His family. He tells them – and us – that “whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

TOPIC 2: Do you show compassion for the weak, the weary and the worthless in society?

During the time of Jesus, Herod and his son Antipas, who ruled a combined 75 years, oppressed the people. Many were marginalized – the women, children, Samaritans, foreigners, lepers, possessed people, the sick, the mutilated and paraplegics.

Even religion was corrupt. It was skewed towards disrespect for the fourth commandment – honoring your father and mother. The teaching at that time was if one gives his offerings to the Temple, he is allowed not to support his parents (Mark 7:8-13).

The abuse of power by and corrupt system of the Romans – the undue favored status of the soldiers, the increasing taxes despite the poverty, the greed of those in authority, the outcast treatment of the physically handicapped – led people to close themselves from gathering as vibrant communities and just focus on their small families as a matter of survival. To each his own.

Jesus was on a mission to change all these. He was building His community under these repressive conditions. He intended to bring those who were marginalized to become accepted.

He was preparing His extended family, a bigger community to teach about love, and sharing and giving and forgiving.

Today, Jesus asks us to accept people who have been dismissed by society into our bigger families.

[VIDEO – A FAMILY WHO ADOPTED A BOY WITH NO ARMS AND LEGS – Video by PeopleTV]

This pandemic is an opportunity for us include, instead of exclude, people who are the least, lost and last into our circle – to give, to share, to live out Jesus’ teaching of love for our neighbor.

Let not the lockdowns and social distancing distance us from those who need our help – be it in material, emotional or spiritual form.

For those “who do the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.” (Matthew 12:50).

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