Mark 6:14-29

 

Rife with Rumors - What were court officials thinking about Jesus? (1) Jesus=John the Baptist; (2) Jesus=Elijah (based on Malachi 3:1 and 4:5-6); (3) Jesus=some prophet from the past. Herod selects option (1) and certainly would have recognized that Jesus posed a serious danger. [1]

Foreshadowing? - Consider the parallel’s between the arrest, conviction, and executions of Jesus and John: [2]

John the Baptist:	Jesus:
Innocent of crime but offends civil rulers Held in civil prison before his execution Herod manipulated to strike down John Herod reluctant but fears consequences Executed by civil power Followers claim body, bury their leader	Innocent of crime, but offends religious rulers Held in civil prison before his execution Chief priests manipulated Pilate to strike Jesus Pilate reluctant, but fears consequences Executed by a civil power Followers claim body and bury their leader

Salome’s Action = Although the world of Herod and his court is foreign to most readers, the destructive dynamics of sexual and power politics remains a very real feature of human life . . . Use of sexual attractiveness to gain access to power, a common element in all of these stories, poses another problem in the workplace. The legend of John the Baptist shows us that justice is the ultimate victim in such situations. [3]

 

Ever had a love/hate relationship with someone? What did you value about the relationship; what undermined the relationship? EX: Maybe you related well with someone who was a good listener-empathetic and compassionate-but yet one who leaked your conversations to others.

Based on what we know of John the Baptist from John and the synoptics, why might Herod Antipas have enjoyed speaking with John? What would have frightened or perplexed him? Comforted him?

 

Richard Jensen, borrowing from Mary Talbert’s parabolic model (which I also did for a homily earlier in Mark), understands and thus proclaims Mark’s Gospel through the paradigm of the Parable of the Sower. [4] In this particular case Herod is an example of the seed which falls on thorny ground. Yes, there is some interest in John’s messianic message, but other political concerns and intrigue choke the Word of the kingdom.

Shift to a question: What cares of the world choke the Word from our lives? Weave present realities into your homily. Show the thorny groundedness of our lives, and then the good news that Jesus transforms sinners into saints and thorny ground people into good soil lives.

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[1] The New Interpreter’s Bible VIII (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995), page 598.
[2] Scot Pinson, God’s Word for the Biblically Inept (Lancaster, PA: Starburst, 2001), p. 125.
[3] Ibid, page 599.
[4] Richard A. Jensen, Preaching Mark’s Gospel (Lima, Ohio: CSS Publishing Co., 1996), page 108.  See also Mary Ann Tolbert, Sowing the Gospel: Mark’s World in Literary-Historical Perspective (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989).