Jb 38:1,8-11; Ps 107; 2 Cor 5:14-17; Mk 4:35-41
COMMENTARY
In the storm of mission
Today’s Gospel reminds us of a peculiar episode in the mission of Jesus with his disciples. What happened in those circumstances becomes a powerful lesson for every Christian in living out his or her faith in Christ and, consequently, in witnessing to that faith even in the midst of extreme situations. Jesus’ question to His disciples, who were terrified by the violent waves of the sea, is still valid for His followers today: “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” Reflecting on the details of this Gospel episode from beginning to end, three points are particularly significant.
1. “Let us cross to the other side.” The significant context of Jesus’ mission, open to the other horizon
In order to understand properly the meaning of what happened, we must keep in mind the context of the episode that the Evangelist indicates at the beginning of the passage. Jesus finished His long teaching in parables on the shore of the “Sea” of Gennesaret, in the Capernaum district, and “on that day, as evening drew on,” He asked His disciples to go by boat to the other side. Their destination is later specified in Mk 5:1: “They came to the other side of the sea, to the territory of the Gerasenes,” that is, to the region of the Gentiles, non-Israelites. Jesus’ decision thus demonstrates His willingness to extend the mission even beyond the territory inhabited by His fellow Israelites, thus opening for the first time, according to the narrative of the evangelist Mark, a missionary foray to “the other side”.
Although only hinted at, the context of this missionary opening is highly suggestive, for it continues the perspective of a mission that always goes ‘beyond’. This was expressed earlier, when Jesus’ disciples wanted Him to return and stay only in Capernaum, and he replied: “Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose, have I come.” (Mk 1:38). And now we understand that by “nearby villages” He meant not only the Israelite villages, but also the Gentile villages on the other shore!
The mission of Jesus with His disciples is always open to new horizons. So much so that the risen Jesus will solemnly recommend His disciples to go into all the world and be His witnesses to the ends of the earth. In this regard, it is worth recalling the teaching of Pope Francis in his Message for this year’s World Missionary Day 2024, with the theme Go and invite everyone to the banquet (cf. Mt 22:9):
Mission, we see, is a tireless going out to all men and women, in order to invite them to encounter God and enter into communion with him. Tireless! God, great in love and rich in mercy, constantly sets out to encounter all men and women, and to call them to the happiness of his kingdom, even in the face of their indifference or refusal. Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd and messenger of the Father, went out in search of the lost sheep of the people of Israel and desired to go even further, in order to reach even the most distant sheep (cf. Jn 10:16). Both before and after his resurrection, he told his disciples, “Go!”, thus involving them in his own mission (cf. Lk 10:3; Mk 16:15). The Church, for her part, in fidelity to the mission she has received from the Lord, will continue to go to the ends of the earth, to set out over and over again, without ever growing weary or losing heart in the face of difficulties and obstacles.
It is worth mentioning here again the important thought of the Pope in this regard in his message for World Missionary [Sun]Day 2022:
The words “to the ends of the earth” should challenge the disciples of Jesus in every age and impel them to press beyond familiar places in bearing witness to him. For all the benefits of modern travel, there are still geographical areas in which missionary witnesses of Christ have not arrived to bring the Good News of his love. Then too no human reality is foreign to the concern of the disciples of Jesus in their mission. Christ’s Church will continue to “go forth” towards new geographical, social and existential horizons, towards “borderline” places and human situations, in order to bear witness to Christ and his love to men and women of every people, culture and social status.
2. “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” An Important Admonition on the Journey with Jesus
It is precisely in the context of a missionary foray into a new horizon that we witness a peculiar scene: a “perfect” storm that terrorizes the disciples. (“A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up”). How is it that Peter, Andrew, and their companions, experienced fishermen of that great lake called “the sea,” were so afraid of a phenomenon that was also common there? Indeed, the fear of these “experts” was so great that they awoke the sleeping Teacher with an outrageous rebuke: “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” Perhaps it was because it was an unusual storm, much bigger than any they had encountered on this sea before? Perhaps, but it seems to me that there was another reason as well.
Perhaps the fact that they were heading for a place where they had not often been before made them even more unsure of the waves and winds they were used to in “their” waters. Their fear came from their hearts, from their little faith in Jesus and their doubt that His presence could save them, but perhaps also from the human instinct to be afraid of any unknown reality.
In this light, Jesus’ warning about the need for faith to overcome fear takes on a double dimension. Firstly, His words to the disciples at that moment, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”, serve to urge them to strengthen true faith in Christ in adversity, especially in our critical situations when He seems to be “dormant”.
Jesus is always the omnipotence of God in action, ruling over the wind and the sea, the emblem of evil, with the very same command that He gave to the devil in the synagogue of Capernaum: “Be quiet! In the second place, this admonition can also be seen as an exhortation to regain the courage to continue the mission with Jesus towards the new horizon that He had asked for and indicated. So much so that in other circumstances Jesus would repeat His heartfelt exhortation to the disciples not to be afraid and to have courage, especially before His passion, the hour of darkness: “In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (Jn 16:33).
3. “Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?” The Path to True Awe Casting Out Fear
In this way, the question asked by the disciples at the end of the episode, “Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?” becomes an invitation to all Christians to have the wisdom to know and recognize Jesus as the Lord who, with the power of God, rules over everything and everyone.
Interestingly, as the Gospel points out, the disciples asked themselves this question while “they were filled with great awe” at the event that had taken place and especially at the person of Jesus, the author of the miracle. With a play on words, the evangelist Mark seems to be describing here an inner transformation of the disciples: they were afraid in the face of the storm, and now this fear has disappeared, giving way to an attitude of awe, of respect and reverence for the One who has revealed Himself as the Lord of the sea, as the Almighty God.
In the life and missionary journey of the disciples, He will be the only Lord to be feared, along with God, and this is the true fear, in contrast to all fear of things and even of men. We must, therefore, have this sapiential vision, which, as Christ Himself will later clearly teach: “And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna” (Mt 10:28). That is, to fear only God, the true and only Almighty. Such awe is accompanied by faith and trust in God, as Jesus made clear on the same occasion (cf. Mt 10:29-31). It manifests itself in a respectful and trusting relationship with Him and guarantees life and casts out all other awes, as expressed in Ps 56:4-5: “When I am afraid, in you I place my trust. I praise the word of God; I trust in God, I do not fear. What can mere flesh do to me?”
Let us pray, then (based on the alternative prayer in the Italian Missal for Sunday XII, Year B):
Strengthen, O Lord, the faith of the Christian people, so that we may not be exalted by successes or crushed by storms, but in every case recognize that You are present and accompany us on the path of history and our mission to be Your witnesses. You who live and reign forever and ever. Amen.
Useful points to consider:
Pope Francis, General Audience, Paul VI Audience Hall, Wednesday, 1st May 2024
Cycle of Catechesis. Vices and Virtues. 17. Faith
[…] Speaking of faith, an episode from the Gospel comes to mind. Jesus’ disciples are crossing the lake, and they are surprised by the storm. They think they can get by with the strength of their arms, with the resources of their experience, but the boat starts to fill up with water and they are seized by panic (cf. Mk 4:35-41). They do not realize that they have the solution before their very eyes: Jesus is there with them on the boat, in the midst of the storm, and Jesus is asleep, says the Gospel. When they finally awaken him, fearful and even angry that he would let them die, Jesus rebukes them: “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” (Mk 4:40).
Here, then, is the great enemy of faith: it is not intelligence, nor is it reason, as, alas, some continue obsessively to repeat; but the great enemy of faith is fear. For this reason, faith is the first gift to welcome in the Christian life: a gift that must be welcomed and asked for daily, so that it may be renewed in us. […]
Certainly, as the Apostle says, not all have faith (cf. 2 Thess 3:2), and we too, who are believers, often realize that we have only a short supply. Often Jesus can rebuke us, as he did with his disciples, for being “men of little faith”. But it is the happiest gift, the only virtue we are permitted to envy. Because those who have faith have a force within them that is beyond merely human; indeed, faith “triggers” grace in us and opens the mind to the mystery of God. As Jesus once said, “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine tree, ‘Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea’, and it would obey you” (Lk 17:6). Therefore, let us too, like the disciples, repeat to him: Lord, “increase our faith!” (Lk 17:5).
Pope Francis, Extraordinary Moment of Prayer, Sagrato of St Peter’s Basilica, Friday, 27 March 2020
[…] It is easy to recognize ourselves in this story. What is harder to understand is Jesus’ attitude. While his disciples are quite naturally alarmed and desperate, he is in the stern, in the part of the boat that sinks first. And what does he do? In spite of the tempest, he sleeps on soundly, trusting in the Father; this is the only time in the Gospels we see Jesus sleeping. When he wakes up, after calming the wind and the waters, he turns to the disciples in a reproaching voice: “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” (v. 40).
Let us try to understand. In what does the lack of the disciples’ faith consist, as contrasted with Jesus’ trust? They had not stopped believing in him; in fact, they called on him. But we see how they call on him: “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?” (v. 38). Do you not care: they think that Jesus is not interested in them, does not care about them. […]
The Lord asks us and, in the midst of our tempest, invites us to reawaken and put into practice that solidarity and hope capable of giving strength, support and meaning to these hours when everything seems to be floundering. The Lord awakens so as to reawaken and revive our Easter faith. We have an anchor: by his cross we have been saved. We have a rudder: by his cross we have been redeemed. We have a hope: by his cross we have been healed and embraced so that nothing and no one can separate us from his redeeming love.
Pope Francis, Angelus, Saint Peter’s Square, Sunday, 20 June 2021
[…] In these situations and in many others, we too feel suffocated by fear and, like the disciples, risk losing sight of the most important thing. In the boat, in fact, even if he is sleeping, Jesus is there, and he shares with his own all that is happening. If on the one hand his slumber surprises us, on the other, it puts us to the test. The Lord is there, present; indeed, he waits — so to speak — for us to engage him, to invoke him, to put him at the centre of what we are experiencing. His slumber causes us to wake up. Because to be disciples of Jesus, it is not enough to believe God is there, that he exists, but we must put ourselves out there with him; we must also raise our voice with him. Hear this: we must cry out to him. Prayer is often a cry: “Lord, save me!” […] He wants this; he wants us to grab hold of him to find shelter from the unexpected waves in life. The Gospel recounts that the disciples approach Jesus, wake him and speak to him (cf. v. 38). This is the beginning of our faith: to recognize that alone we are unable to stay afloat; that we need Jesus like sailors need the stars to find their course. Faith begins from believing that we are not enough for ourselves, from feeling in need of God. When we overcome the temptation to close ourselves off, when we overcome the false religiosity that does not want to disturb God, when we cry out to him, he can work wonders in us. It is the gentle and extraordinary power of prayer, which works miracles.