Mary, Woman of Ambivalence
Chapter nine in The Real Mary deals with the story found in the third chapter of Mark. Jesus was in his house and so many people had gathered around him that he and his disciples couldn't even eat. The people who were gathering around him were not, it is important to note, the righteous, those of good standing and birth; on the contrary they were for the most part the marginalized in and excluded from society.
Verse 21 of chapter three says that Mary and Jesus' brothers and sisters were coming to get him because they thought that he might be a little over the edge. McKnight suggests that Mary must have been concerned because the way that he was acting was not what she and other Jews were expecting from the Messiah. He writes, "Everyone knew the Messiah was to purge Israel of sinners, not mix with them" (p. 80). Perhaps Mary thought that Jesus needed help from his mother to get him back on track. "Mary's ambivalence is clear: She believed her son was the promised Messiah and, at the same time, she knew what he was doing was contrary to what the Messiah was promised to do. Something had to change" (pp. 81, 82).
Starting in verse 31, when Mary and Jesus' siblings arrive to take him back with them, he further shocks Mary by responding to the news that "your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you," by redefining the nature of the family in the kingdom of God as those who do the will of God. No doubt it was a bracing moment for Mary. We are not told how Mary responded. In fact, this is the last time we hear about Mary until the crucifixion. McKnight believes "she also joined the new family of Jesus at that time" (p. 85).
He concludes this chapter this way:
Verse 21 of chapter three says that Mary and Jesus' brothers and sisters were coming to get him because they thought that he might be a little over the edge. McKnight suggests that Mary must have been concerned because the way that he was acting was not what she and other Jews were expecting from the Messiah. He writes, "Everyone knew the Messiah was to purge Israel of sinners, not mix with them" (p. 80). Perhaps Mary thought that Jesus needed help from his mother to get him back on track. "Mary's ambivalence is clear: She believed her son was the promised Messiah and, at the same time, she knew what he was doing was contrary to what the Messiah was promised to do. Something had to change" (pp. 81, 82).
Starting in verse 31, when Mary and Jesus' siblings arrive to take him back with them, he further shocks Mary by responding to the news that "your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you," by redefining the nature of the family in the kingdom of God as those who do the will of God. No doubt it was a bracing moment for Mary. We are not told how Mary responded. In fact, this is the last time we hear about Mary until the crucifixion. McKnight believes "she also joined the new family of Jesus at that time" (p. 85).
He concludes this chapter this way:
We can understand Mary's struggle. No one, including Mary, anticipated the kind of Messiah Jesus would become. Following Jesus proved as difficult for Mary as for Peter and for John the Baptist (who himself had plenty of ambivalence about Jesus) and for the siblings of Jesus...While the two visions of the Messiah--the one in the Magnificat and the one guiding Jesus' public ministry--didn't seem to fit, it was hers to trust that Jesus really was the Messiah" (p. 85).
posted by UCC Medfield at 7:43 AM
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