Mark wrote to explain
Christ
to the new Gentile converts.
Today’s Gospel passage describes a pivotal moment.
It is at the halfway point of St. Mark’s Gospel, and it marks a
strong shift. This shift has everything to do with the word
‘way.’
There was something unknown and mysterious about the whole first
half of Mark’s Gospel. It began straightaway with the figure
of John the Baptist, who was sent to prepare the “way of the Lord”
(Mk 1:2-3). Jesus then arrives on the scene and calls two
sets of fishermen-brothers, who immediately leave everything
behind to follow him. They have embarked on that “way”
prophesied by John. They follow Jesus wherever he goes, at
one point making their “way” through a grainfield and enduring an
attack from the Pharisees. (Mk 2:23) Jesus later sends
the Twelve apostles out two-by-two to make their “way” (or
journey,” as some translations say) from village to village
preaching the kingdom of God. (Mk 6:8) Jesus feeds a large
crowd by multiplying loaves and fish, “lest they faint along the
way.” (Mk 8:3) This word “way” keeps popping up.
But we are left wondering: a way to where? Throughout the
first half of the Gospel, it is unknown to the disciples how
things will unfold, or where the “way” is headed. All the
while, Jesus teaches in parables, so the reality of the cross
remains hidden and incomprehensible to them.
Today’s passage begins the second half of Mark’s Gospel, and here,
for the first time, Jesus spoke “openly” about how he must suffer,
die and rise again. This is not a parable. He spoke
plainly. Mark strategically uses that keyword “way” seven
times in this and the next two chapters. All to refer to Jesus’
way up to Jerusalem to be crucified. Here is the dramatic
shift. Everything from this point forward is about the way
to Jerusalem. Mark drives home the point: the unknown way on
which the disciples have been following Jesus is in fact the way
of the cross.
Even with the new clarity in Jesus’ speech, the disciples seem to
remain perplexed. The idea of the cross is still a bit
incomprehensible to them. This is why Peter pulls Our Lord
aside and begins to rebuke Jesus when Jesus mentions his suffering
and death. The grace of God and the light of faith had begun
to illuminate Peter’s mind when he was able to say rightly, “You
are the Christ,” when asked by Jesus, ”But who do you say
that I am?” But just moments later, we see how Peter’s
transformation was not yet complete. When it came to the
cross, Peter was still thinking not as God does, but as human
beings do.
Even we, who benefit from almost 2,000 years of reflection on
Jesus’ cross and resurrection, often remain perplexed when it
comes to the crosses in our own lives. We are slow to learn
to think as God does rather than as human beings do. And the
learning process is often painful. Maybe it is only on the
Way of the Cross that we learn the value of the cross – indeed,
the necessity of the cross. It ultimately involves trust in
God, that he is not leading us to our ultimate destruction but
rather too life and joy and fullness. He only allows trials
along the way because we need them. St John Henry Newman
encourages us, “Let us put ourselves into His hands, and not be
startled though He leads us by strange way, a Mirabilis via, as
the Church speaks. Let us be sure He will lead us right,
that He will bring us to that which is not indeed what we think
best, nor what is best for another, but what is best for us.”
Jesus said elsewhere, “I am the way,” and there is no other (Jn
14:6). May our new hearing of the Gospel this year help us
to lo learn that following Christ means following him on the way
of the cross. There is no other way.
