Today’s Gospel from Mark (3: 20-21), Fr Paul says is very short, just two verses. It tells of the reaction of Jesus’s family when he returns home.

Fr Paul says this Gospel reading is about the rejection of Jesus.  Today, he says, we hear that his family thinks he is out of his mind; he is mad; he is crazy. We will hear that he was also rejected by the scribes and we will hear, again, next week Jesus state that he is closer to those who listen rather than he is to his own family.

So, we have a paradox in the week ahead. One minute, Jesus is really popular and the next he is misunderstood. One minute he is rejected by his family, he is mad; and the next he is accepted by those who listen to him.

In short, it is necessary to make a decision on behalf of Jesus and to be prepared to suffer persecution.

Fr Paul invites us to reflect on this for our prayer today.