Mark 5:1-20

2 Samuel 15:13-13, 30; 16:5-13

Psalm 3:2-3,4-5, 6-7

Mark 5:1-20

Jesus and his disciples came to the other side of the sea,

to the territory of the Gerasenes.

When he got out of the boat,

at once a man from the tombs who had an unclean spirit met him.

The man had been dwelling among the tombs,

and no one could restrain him any longer, even with a chain.

In fact, he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains,

but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed,

and no one was strong enough to subdue him.

Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides

he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.

Catching sight of Jesus from a distance,

he ran up and prostrated himself before him,

crying out in a loud voice,

"What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

I adjure you by God, do not torment me!"

(He had been saying to him, "Unclean spirit, come out of the man!")

He asked him, "What is your name?"

He replied, "Legion is my name. There are many of us."

And he pleaded earnestly with him

not to drive them away from that territory.

Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside.

And they pleaded with him,

"Send us into the swine. Let us enter them."

And he let them, and the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine.

The herd of about two thousand rushed down a steep bank into the sea,

where they were drowned.

The swineherds ran away and reported the incident in the town

and throughout the countryside.

And people came out to see what had happened.

As they approached Jesus,

they caught sight of the man who had been possessed by Legion,

sitting there clothed and in his right mind.

And they were seized with fear.

Those who witnessed the incident explained to them what had happened

to the possessed man and to the swine.

Then they began to beg him to leave their district.

As he was getting into the boat,

the man who had been possessed pleaded to remain with him.

But Jesus would not permit him but told him instead,

"Go home to your family and announce to them

all that the Lord in his pity has done for you."

Then the man went off and began to proclaim in the Decapolis

what Jesus had done for him; and all were amazed.

Opening Prayer: Lord, you are able to make all things clean and new. Purify my heart today so that I may serve you as my king and Lord. I accept today the trials you send and the temptations you permit. Help me to be victorious in my battle.

Encountering the Word of God

1. David is Humbled: David’s inaction and lack of paternal discipline concerning his son, Absalom, opened up the way for Absalom to lead a rebellion against his father David. When David heard about the rebellion, he ordered a retreat to the Mount of Olives. As he approached the town of Bahurim – a town of Benjamin, located northeast of Jerusalem – he was cursed by Shimei, a member of Saul’s house. Instead of following the suggestion of Abishai and doing away with Shimei, David chose to accept this trial and the discipline as coming from the Lord. David has truly been humbled. While the first part of the Second Book of Samuel is about David’s triumphs, the chapters that follow his sin with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah, present David suffering the effects of his sins. He is a man humbled in his old age and now experiences forced exile from Jerusalem.

2. Jesus Amid Uncleanliness: In today’s Gospel, Mark narrates stories about Jesus’ power and authority over nature, disease, demons, and death. Everything in today’s story speaks about uncleanliness: Jesus and his disciples are in unclean Gentile territory, walking among unclean tombs, with unclean animals and a man possessed with an unclean spirit nearby. All of this uncleanliness does not render Jesus unclean and Jesus is in full command of the situation. When the unclean spirit tries to control Jesus by adjuring him in the name of God, this action is futile. When Jesus begins the exorcism, he extracts the demon’s name. In doing this, Jesus manifests his power and authority over the demons and casts them into a herd of swine. This leads to their demise as the swine will rush down the hill into the Sea of Galilee.

3. True Humility: David manifests true humility and patient forbearance in the First Reading. Humility is an important virtue in the Christian life. It can be identified with “poverty of spirit” and is one of the foundations of the spiritual life. Too little humility leads to pride, arrogance, and vanity. Too much humility leads to self-degradation and an improper view of ourselves. True humility concerns the truth about ourselves as redeemed creatures of God and as Christian servants of our brothers and sisters.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I love you and I trust in you. You are my shield and my glory. I call out to you and you answer me. You sustain me and I fear no evil with you at my side.

Resolution: To be humble, according to Saint Teresa of Avila, is to walk in truth. What is the truth about myself? How do I see myself? As I truly am or have a built up a false view of myself? Do I know my strengths and weaknesses? Do I know how much God sustains me and cares for me? How can I go in true self-knowledge today?