Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

No book in the Bible captures the drama of the human condition as powerfully and eloquently as the book of Job, from which our first reading is taken today. The sacred writer, with searing honesty, addresses the boredom and routine which can form such a large part of our lives. He speaks of the dissatisfaction and restlessness which so often assail us, especially in the face of unmerited and innocent suffering which Job himself is enduring. Job laments his unlooked-for lot, and in so doing becomes a spokesman for every human person. Thanks to the mass media, we are privy to so much of the pain and suffering in our world and are at a loss to provide satisfactory explanations. Further, the problems which have gripped the economies of the hitherto prosperous nations and the threat to our personal wellbeing and that of those closest to us, prompt deeper musings and questions within us. Where are security and deliverance to be found? It is reassuring to know that long before the time of Christ believers were asking much the same questions, as the story of Job attests.

The mosaic of little incidents from the public ministry of Christ set before us in the gospel might appear, at first sight, far removed from the dilemma and heart-searching of Job. Yet what we have here is God’s answer to the pain and suffering of the human spirit. The healing of the sick and curing of the distressed depict the profound sympathy of the Son of God for afflicted humanity. The reaction and awareness of the evil spirits show that a greater and more powerful force in the person of Jesus Christ has come into the world. The stranglehold which alien forces exercised over humanity was in the process of being broken. Saint Augustine notes that “Christ became infirm to heal our infirmity, and became weak to restore our strength.” This is the good news which the Evangelist Mark proclaims to us today. It is news which remains fresh and continues to surprise us because the risen Lord, through his own passion and death, has destroyed the powers which oppress us.

It is this conviction of the startling truth of the Christian gospel which places an all-embracing obligation on the apostle Paul. He will go to any lengths to tell the world the story of Jesus Christ and his significance for every human being. The story of Job poses the profoundest of questions to which the incarnation of the Son of God provides the answer.

+Michael Campbell OSA

Coadjutor Bishop of Lancaster