Another Nugget?

I am still reading Mark these days to perhaps see a thing or two that I have missed all these years ignoring this seemingly bland gospel. This week I found a nugget I had missed which I thought interesting. Mark explains early on in his gospel that Jesus is estranged from his family. In an episode reported in all three gospels, Jesus mother and brothers are calling for him from outside a home so crowded with people, they cannot gain access. When someone tells Jesus his family is outside asking for him, Jesus replies, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”. Then looking at those who sat around him he said, “Here are my mother and brothers. Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Mk. 3: 31-35; Mt. 12:46-50; and Lk. 8: 19-21.

Jesus’ seeming rejection of his family in favor of his disciples is a hard teaching for me. Mark lets his readers know right away when the the crowds quickly become unmanageable, the local Pharisees fear for disorder and the scribes from Jerusalem come up to Galilee to challenge him. Mark reports the episode as part of a session with scribes accusing Jesus of being possessed by the devil casting out demons. Matthew’s report is somewhat similar, though it occurs in Chapter 12 after 22 verses of teaching (Mt. 12: 22-45). Luke sticks the episode amidst unrelated texts, such that it has no context.

In Matthew and Luke this hard teaching seems to stand on its own. The only family that is relevant are those who do the will of God. Why would Jesus estrange himself from his family for their lack of fervent discipleship? Why would Jesus say these things right after saying that people will be forgiven their sins and any blasphemies they utter except for blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? Certainly Jesus’ mother believed in him (Jn. 2:3-5) even if his brothers did not (Jn. 7:5).

I think Jesus’ family was embarrassed and likely afraid for their own acceptance in their community due to Jesus’ outrageous behavior. They may also have been afraid for him. And Jesus knew it. So he took the opportunity early on in his ministry to distance himself from his mother and brothers. There are two verses reported by Mark (my nugget for today), that are reported nowhere else. The verses are translated variously in all my Bibles. In my NRSV, the verses read, “Then he went home [to Peter’s mother’s house in Capernaum]; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. When his family heard it., they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, ‘He has gone out of his mind.'” Mk. 3:20-21. My NIV says that they went to take charge of him. My Catholic Bible says when his “people” heard it they went to take hold of him. My KJV says that when his “friends” heard it they went to lay hold of him because he was beside himself.

Well, as you may have guessed, the Greek is unclear on who “they” are. The subject of the verb “heard” and the subject of the verb “to restrain” are both plural masculine pronouns (they) with no other identification. Also, it may be of interest to note that the verbs as translated to “restrain,” “lay hold,” and “take charge” are kind. The Greek verb is quite strong, translating to seize by force of physical strength. Modern Bibles conclude that it is his family that seeks to take hold of him, and that is why when 10 verses later in the same episode the mother and brothers seek him in the house, Jesus rebukes their call.

So, for me, this episode is no longer so much a hard teaching as it is an assertion of independence by Jesus to his family that he will not be restrained from his mission no matter what people say about him. He has a higher calling from his Father in heaven. And for Mark, who reports these facts early on, Jesus (and his disciples) chose the hard path giving up family and community. For so many of us, the hard reality comes when the family and community we know and love does not square with what we feel we must do or have come to believe. Do we support our children, grandchildren and neighbors in their ways different from our own? Hmmm. Something for me to think on.