What Does Jesus Mean by This? Re: Mary

[Seeking33]

Does anyone know how to interpret this scripture. It’s taken from Mark 3:31-35. Basically Jesus tells a crowd of listeners that whoever does God’s will is his brother and sister and mother. Why would Jesus make such a statement? Was He possibly seeing ahead of time that people would so venerate His Mother and He was letting people know that whoever does His will is “His mother”? It seems that the crowd was letting Jesus know that His mother was outside and He kind of blew it off. The crowd thought that she was important and should be let in, but Jesus just was like “Who are my mother and my brothers?”. I am learning about the Catholic faith and am nervously yet anxiously awaiting confirmation (taking RCIA). I’m trying to make sure that I know that I know that this is right. This scripture came to me today, and I’m wanting to find out what He meant. I know that there must be a good Catholic response to this as almost every question I’ve had so far has been answered by Scripture or Church history. Thanks!!

 

[Mystophilus]

Seeking33:

Does anyone know how to interpret this scripture. It’s taken from Mark 3:31-35. Basically Jesus tells a crowd of listeners that whoever does God’s will is his brother and sister and mother. Why would Jesus make such a statement?

I am not a Catholic, so take this as a thoroughly unofficial reading.

While, at first glance, Jesus does indeed seem to be ‘blowing them off’, his later act of placing his mother in the care of ‘the disciple whom he loved’ (John 19:26-7) indicates that his concern for her had not ended. Note also the fact that the text, having presented Jesus’ statement that whoever does God’s will is his own immediate family, immediately veers away to a different day. What we do not see is his family going home, nor him inviting them inside. In the parallel texts (in Matthew 12 and Luke 8), the same effect occurs: no conclusion on the family situation. This suggests that the focus of the passage is not actually upon his blood relatives at all, but rather upon the idea of the family of God’s people.

 

[Todd_Easton]

Jesus means there is no nepotism in the kingdom of God. Mary is “blessed among women” (Luke 1:42) not because she is Jesus’ natural mother but because she is peerless in her obedience to God (Luke 1:38).

 

[jimmy]

Seeking33:

Does anyone know how to interpret this scripture. It’s taken from Mark 3:31-35. Basically Jesus tells a crowd of listeners that whoever does God’s will is his brother and sister and mother. Why would Jesus make such a statement? Was He possibly seeing ahead of time that people would so venerate His Mother and He was letting people know that whoever does His will is “His mother”? It seems that the crowd was letting Jesus know that His mother was outside and He kind of blew it off. The crowd thought that she was important and should be let in, but Jesus just was like “Who are my mother and my brothers?”. I am learning about the Catholic faith and am nervously yet anxiously awaiting confirmation (taking RCIA). I’m trying to make sure that I know that I know that this is right. This scripture came to me today, and I’m wanting to find out what He meant. I know that there must be a good Catholic response to this as almost every question I’ve had so far has been answered by Scripture or Church history. Thanks!!

He is not defaming His mother. He is simply saying that it is those who do His will who are His family. Mary is considered to be the greatest of saints, not simply because she was Jesus’ mother, but because she lived a great life and lived according to God, “let it be done unto me according to thy will.”[Luke1;29] That is the way Mary lived her life. Therefore, she is the truest of Christs family.

 

[ChristianWAB]

Seeking33:

Does anyone know how to interpret this scripture. It’s taken from Mark 3:31-35. Basically Jesus tells a crowd of listeners that whoever does God’s will is his brother and sister and mother. Why would Jesus make such a statement? Was He possibly seeing ahead of time that people would so venerate His Mother and He was letting people know that whoever does His will is “His mother”? It seems that the crowd was letting Jesus know that His mother was outside and He kind of blew it off. The crowd thought that she was important and should be let in, but Jesus just was like “Who are my mother and my brothers?”. I am learning about the Catholic faith and am nervously yet anxiously awaiting confirmation (taking RCIA). I’m trying to make sure that I know that I know that this is right. This scripture came to me today, and I’m wanting to find out what He meant. I know that there must be a good Catholic response to this as almost every question I’ve had so far has been answered by Scripture or Church history. Thanks!!

Jesus was truly a brilliant Teacher. His words always seem to have a meaning that is several degrees deeper than human understanding can initially perceive. Clearly, there were people in the crowd who assumed that Jesus’ mother and siblings would be more important to him, but in just a few words, Jesus was able to demonstrate that obedience to God is THE most important thing. Family relations matter little in the kingdom of God. Obedience is key. I think that people remember this because, on the surface, it may have seemed disrespectful to His family. Yet, if he’d just said, “Obedience is more important than who you’re related to.” would nearly as many people have remembered His words?

 

[Seeking33]

Thanks. This is helping me to view it in a different way. So basically what we’re saying is that Jesus does not favor Mary because she gave birth to Jesus, but because of her obedience. If we are all like her, we can become a part of his family? Maybe He was just using this as an opportunity to teach the crowd that He does not look at people for who they are or their position in life, but he looks at people’s obedience. I’m still trying to digest. This one may take some meditation. It’s very hard for someone raised Protestant and never taught these things. We tend to be able to grasp mentally, but not spiritually. I can understand things in my head and KNOW they are right, but making my heart agree with my mind is tough sometimes. Thank you for your (name removed by moderator)ut!!

 

[CreosMary]

Looking in the New Jerome Biblical Commentary, it explains that, in our Lord’s day the natural family were extraordinarily important so Our Lord was not refuting Our lady in any way, it was and is taken for granted that he honoured his mother most highly. What he was teaching the people was the concept of a Spiritual family under God, a teaching that was novel in this time. So whowever does the will of God is my (spiritual) family.
Hope this helps
God Bless and Mary protect you always

 

[mspencer]

Saint Augustine in his “On Virginity” wrote “what else does he here teach us, than to prefer to kinship “after the flesh” our descent “after the spirit.” He teaches that persons are united by nearness of spirit to those who are just and holy, and that by obeying and following they cleave to their teaching and conduct. Therefore Mary is more blessed in receiving the faith of Christ than in conceiving the flesh of Christ. For to the one who said, “blessed is the womb, which bore you!” he himself answered: “blessed are they who hear the Word of God and keep it.” Concerning his own brothers, his own relatives after the flesh, who at first did not believe in him(Jn 7:4), he found dubious advantage in being their kin. As for Mary, her nearness as a mother would have been little help for her salvation if she had not borne Christ in her heart in a more blessed manner than in the flesh.”

 

[Seeking33]

mspencer:

Saint Augustine in his “On Virginity” wrote “what else does he here teach us, than to prefer to kinship “after the flesh” our descent “after the spirit.” He teaches that persons are united by nearness of spirit to those who are just and holy, and that by obeying and following they cleave to their teaching and conduct. Therefore Mary is more blessed in receiving the faith of Christ than in conceiving the flesh of Christ. For to the one who said, “blessed is the womb, which bore you!” he himself answered: “blessed are they who hear the Word of God and keep it.” Concerning his own brothers, his own relatives after the flesh, who at first did not believe in him(Jn 7:4), he found dubious advantage in being their kin. As for Mary, her nearness as a mother would have been little help for her salvation if she had not borne Christ in her heart in a more blessed manner than in the flesh.”

Wow!!! Thanks for sharing that! That is awesome and I feel alot better having a deeper understanding. I knew Jesus meant something more than what He was saying, I just didn’t know what. Thanks everyone for taking the time to look things up.