00:28After the shipment of
00:31Mark does not possess, or has not wanted to communicate to us, what the twelve experienced when they were sent by Jesus to announce
00:40that the kingdom of God was approaching and to cast out the demons that oppressed the members of the people
00:47elected.
00:48Instead, he wanted to share some isolated facts about Herod and the death of John the Baptist.
00:57at the hands of this monarch of the Herodian dynasty.
01:01The point of connection between the experience of Herod and those around him will be the same as that experienced by the twelve.
01:09And Jesus, when in the lands of Caesarea Philippi he will ask them, "Who do people say that he is?"
01:29Herod has no real interest in Jesus; he only feels some curiosity, but not enough to go out and meet him.
01:43of Jesus and let yourself be touched by him.
01:45Mark tells us some essential details about the death of John the Baptist.
01:52Herod is somewhat fussy and prefers to act rather than experience any contradiction in the leadership of his people.
02:02On the other hand, John the Baptist is a deceptive figure who can provoke uprisings or discomfort among the people.
02:10Flavius Josephus presents a very different version of the martyrdom of the Baptist, but in essence it is consistent with the
02:20narrated by Marcos.
02:22Even so, however that may be, in this it is more sound to follow Josephus than our evangelist,
02:29What he is proposing is a prophetic foreshadowing of the martyrdom suffered by Jesus, the only righteous one and son.
02:39of God.
02:40The teaching of the loaves
02:43The large meals in this section frame Jesus' statement on food purity standards.
02:54These two popular foods, one in Jewish territory and the other in pagan land, have many similarities.
03:03The compassion of Jesus
03:05The need to feed those who follow him
03:09The smallness of the possessions that the disciples own
03:13The veiled images of the Eucharist
03:17The role of the disciples who distribute the loaves
03:21They ate until they were full
03:25Leftovers are collected, not thrown away.
03:29The number of participants is mentioned.
03:33In the first story, Jesus wants his disciples to rest upon returning from the mission he sent them on.
03:41But it was impossible because of the people who were following them.
03:45In both narratives, the role of the disciples who provide the food and distribute it themselves is important.
03:55From Jesus' perspective, the Eucharistic vision is fundamental when mentioning thanksgiving.
04:02The act of breaking the loaves and distributing them among the people through the disciples
04:10Mark is thinking about the prophet Elijah
04:13He will feed the widow and her son who have welcomed him and shared his food with him.
04:20Even though they were about to die from the drought that was ravaging Israel
04:26When the pitcher of flour doesn't run out and the oil can doesn't run dry
04:31This narrative concludes in the Synoptics
04:35As in John, with the miracle of Jesus walking on water
04:40As a symbol that Jesus can cross over the evil that envelops the world and not suffer its power
04:49Purity and impurity
04:51In the context of discussions about purity and impurity
04:56Jesus teaches his disciples that there is nothing impure.
05:01Well, the real impurity is not in the food.
05:05Neither in body, nor in belonging to a people far removed from Israel
05:09But in the dispositions of the heart
05:13In this context, Jesus heals the daughter of a pagan woman from a distance.
05:19What matters is that Jesus, with the help of the keenness of a suffering mother
05:25Understand the good that the father wants for his children
05:29It can be given to whoever needs it, whether or not they are from the chosen people.
05:35This does not preclude the possibility that Jesus never began an active mission among the pagans.
05:42What the church will understand and implement as soon as the event of Pentecost occurs
05:50Peter's profession
05:52In the midst of people who doubt Jesus
05:56Or that they do not have a clear vision of Him
06:00Or that they view it with adverse eyes
06:02There are the disciples of Jesus who have a particular vision
06:07The Pharisees want a sign that confirms to them that God is on Jesus' side
06:13Just as it was with Moses when he performed great signs for the people
06:19There is Herod, who, like the Pharisees
06:23They have different criteria for action than those that Jesus is preaching.
06:28It is not power or fame that will build the Christian community
06:34But the gospel of Jesus and the action of the Holy Spirit
06:38It is in this setting that the healing of the blind man of Bethsaida takes place.
06:43He has to leave the city to get healthcare.
06:48It is not in Jerusalem nor in Tiberias
06:51Where the high priests and Herod rule
06:55Where a personal encounter with God takes place.
06:58But on the outskirts, on the periphery
07:01Far from the noise and open to God's action
07:05Having arrived in Caesarea, Jesus wants to know
07:08What do people who have met him think of him?
07:12People who follow him occasionally
07:14But they haven't committed to him
07:17People who have not been instructed in the mysteries of the kingdom
07:21The answers are varied and wrong.
07:25In contrast, Peter was at the head of the twelve
07:28He confesses that Jesus is the Messiah that God had promised to Israel
07:34Jesus is a continuation of the history of salvation
07:39That God began when He called Abraham
07:42And when he freed Israel from the power of Pharaoh in Egypt
07:46Moreover, the God of the fathers had created the world
07:50To establish a definitive alliance of friendship with Israel
07:55To that people God has given Jesus of Nazareth as Messiah, Savior, and Prophet
08:03And he has come to announce that God's promises are about to be fulfilled.
08:09Therefore, he invites them to change, to conversion, to return to God, and to listen attentively to his gospel.
08:18Thus, we conclude the first part of the Gospel of Mark.
08:23That has focused on presenting Jesus
08:26Continuing the story of salvation that God began by choosing Israel
08:32And that is why he declares and confesses him as Christ or Messiah
08:54Thank you!
