XVI Sunday in Ordinary Time – B – July 18, 2021
Jeremiah 23: 1 - 6 / Psalm 23 / Ephesians 2: 13- 18 / Mark 6: 30 - 34

When it comes to your schedule and calendar, are you a planner? Do you tend to plan out your day, week, and month and all the activities and meetings that go along with it? Some planning is necessary, but even such a good thing or practice can be taken to an extreme. Plans and planning should exist to serve us or those who make them and not vice-versa.

Today’s reading from the sixth chapter of Mark makes it clear that the public ministry of Jesus was very public and constant. He even managed to delegate some of the tasks of preaching and healing to his apostles. The text highlights just how busy and overworked they were ministering to so many people: “People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat” (Mark 6: 31b). It certainly appears that Jesus was a doer, but perhaps not as much a planner. The people and their needs continually filled his agenda.  

The noted spiritual writer from Chile, Padre Segundo Galilea, observes in his work entitled, The Following of Jesus, that the mission and days of Jesus were marked mostly by continual interruptions and not characterized by detailed planning or well-laid out schedules. Jesus had a plan but was not concerned about making plans. His plan was and is the plan of salvation. His days were dedicated to doing the work of his Heavenly Father sent him to do. The mission was clear; the needs were as varied as the individuals and communities that came to him.

Amid so many interruptions and the huge numbers of people clamoring for his attention, healing power and wisdom, Jesus never loses focus on his primary concern, the salvation of the people, the giving of his Father’s mercy. They are his children; they are his mission as well as his schedule and plan. Again, Mark highlights the singular focus of Jesus and his constant expression of concern: “When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things” (Mk 6:34).

Relentless describes how the crowds came to Jesus; tireless describes how he carried out his mission. His response, especially as he disembarked, demonstrates to us why he did it and that we must follow his lead. Fidelity to Christ and his call to love will not automatically occur if we have time and strength to respond to the needs of others. Responding like him requires a heart that is willing and able to be moved with compassion and mercy before the suffering of people around us.

While Jesus seems to possess a superhuman level of endurance, it is essential to recognize that he was always available to love and serve not due to an endless amount of time in his schedule or calendar, but out of the boundless space in his heart for sinners and all who seek him. As followers of Christ, let us remember that time and physical energy are finite, but his mercy is eternal. May we always be eternally grateful and merciful.

Rejoice in the Lord’s compassion and mercy!
Fr. Charles Johnson, O.P.