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6/20 - 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time
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FAITH IN A STORM
The Sea of Galilee is a lake, more than six hundred feet below sea level. It is a lake thirteen miles long from north to south and eight miles broad from east to west at its widest. It’s also known as Lake Gennesaret or Lake Kinneret. But Mark calls it a sea, to suggest images of chaotic power, of sea monsters, of evil. The sea is a place of mystery, of powerful forces hidden below the surface.
It is something to be feared, a mysterious depth that no one but God can control.
The Lake is notorious for its sudden storms. On the west side there are hills with valleys and gullies, and rivers have cut deep ravines through the tablelands down into the sea. When a cold wind blows from the west, the valleys, gullies and hills act like gigantic funnels compressing the storms and letting them rush down to the lake to create violent waves. The compressed wind rushes down upon the lake with savage violence and with startling suddenness, causing violent and unexpected storms.
Despite the fact that many of the disciples are themselves fishermen, and thus, presumably, are familiar with the turbulent moods of the lake, it is they who grow terrified and panicky, while Jesus, the landsman, serenely sleeps in the stern. Unable to control their fears, the disciples wake Jesus up, accusing him of disregarding their safety. Jesus’ response is immediate. First, Jesus attends to the physical danger confronting them, rebuking the wind and commanding the sea, “Peace! Be still!” These are the same words Jesus used to exorcise and banish the demon at the beginning of Mark’s Gospel. Jesus’ words here result in an instantaneous calm falling over the sea. This miracle proves that Jesus is master of the natural world, able to control the mysterious, humanly untamable side of creation.
Just as the disciples had accused Jesus of abandoning them during the tumult, Jesus now turns to his followers and chides them, asking, “Why are you terrified? “Do you not yet have Faith?” Mark’s miracle story asks us to consider two questions. First, “Who is Jesus?” and second, “Will you trust this Jesus?” The disciples fail on both counts on this occasion. Even though they don’t suspect Jesus’ true identity, they accept Him with joy as their Master, but they are incapable of trusting in Jesus’ love and care for them in situations they themselves cannot control. They panic, overwhelmed by fear, doubt and insecurity on this stormy voyage. Jesus stills the storm as if exorcising a demon in much the same way as we see in many of Mark’s miracle stories. That is the whole point of the story: nothing could harm the disciples while Jesus was with them. Many people have found great comfort in sensing Jesus’ constant presence in the most difficult and dangerous crises.
Mark tells this event to a church that was facing storms of its own. It was facing persecutions, and doubts about whether Christ would return. We, too, encounter violent storms as we sail on the sea of our lives. Many things in the world disturb us, shake our faith and weaken our confidence in God.
We have only to pick up a newspaper, turn on the evening news, or scan the latest headlines to see that life is turbulent. And the trials of daily life, both great and small, crash over the side of our tiny fishing boat. Our little boats, the boats of our lives, are tossed and turned as the waves pour in. We are asked to have a strong faith. Faith does not mean smooth sailing. Faith means knowing who God is and knowing who we are in relationship to God and allowing that relationship to bring about peace in our hearts, to bring about calm.
We have only to pick up a newspaper, turn on the evening news, or scan the latest headlines to see that life is turbulent. And the trials of daily life, both great and small, crash over the side of our tiny fishing boat. Our little boats, the boats of our lives, are tossed and turned as the waves pour in. We are asked to have a strong faith. Faith does not mean smooth sailing. Faith means knowing who God is and knowing who we are in relationship to God and allowing that relationship to bring about peace in our hearts, to bring about calm.
We have only to pick up a newspaper, turn on the evening news, or scan the latest headlines to see that life is turbulent. And the trials of daily life, both great and small, crash over the side of our tiny fishing boat. Our little boats, the boats of our lives, are tossed and turned as the waves pour in. We are asked to have a strong faith. Faith does not mean smooth sailing. Faith means knowing who God is and knowing who we are in relationship to God and allowing that relationship to bring about peace in our hearts, to bring about calm.