asoul1

February 3

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Monday, February 3

MARK 5:1-20

I control all evil, and after I cast out “legion,” I told him to stay home with his family.

Prayerthoughts
a. A “man from the tombs,” There are many who are “outcast” in our world in one way or another. In general, should I treat them better than I am?

b. The man was obviously in pain. What can I do to alleviate some of the pain of the people that I thought of in letter a?

c. The demon addresses Jesus as God. Sometimes “evil” is caused by people who think they are close to God. Is there some evil in my life that I have not tried to conquer?

d. The man called himself “Legion” because there were many evils that affected him. What are the evils in my life right now? What should I do about them?

e. “Swine” were unclean according to Jewish Law. Therefore, to the Jewish mind, the “swine” were not important and could be destroyed. Should I have a better attitude toward other religions?

f. “They were seized with fear.” What are the most fearful things in my life at the present time and what can I do about it? (This is the task of the meditation.)

g. Why do you think the people begged Jesus to leave their district?

h. Jesus does not allow the cured man to follow him as the Apostles followed Jesus. Instead, Jesus tells him to “go home and to your family.” Why is this a significant statement for the follower of Jesus today?

i. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will determine the answer to letter f.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

“SOMETHING BETTER”

+ The Gospel is the familiar story of a demon-possession of a man

- there are the expected elements in it:

- Jesus encounters evil/devil

- evil trying to control Jesus

- amazement of the people

- but unique elements in it as well:

- multiple possession: the name “Legion”

- swine—almost a humorous part of the story

- Jewish people felt pigs were unclean/ultimate destruction of them

- the destruction itself: one of two times that Jesus used his power for destruction (the other was the fig tree)

- the directive that the man go home to his family rather than follow Jesus directly

- ultimately it is a story of the power of God through Jesus

- Jesus controls the forces of evil (storm before) and the power of Satan in particular (here)

+ It is all part of the “something better” that the letter to the Hebrews speaks of

- the “something better” being our redemption and subsequent following of Jesus

- that “something better” was prefigured in the faith of the people of the Hebrew Scriptures

+ As Christians, we are part of the “something better” which we know as Jesus’ redemption and his subsequent action in our lives

- that “something better” we have accepted and agreed to

- the question of the liturgy is the reminder: how well are we carrying through with the “something better” of Jesus?

- that includes especially the thought of love, for example

- as contained in 1 Corinthians 13

- or caring for others

+ Part of that “something better” might include the final statement of Jesus to the possessed man-now saved:

- he was going to follow him in a more total way of giving up family

- and Jesus’ directive is to stay with his family

- that could easily lead to a meditation about our families

- the question of ourselves about our family and our own involvement with them

- is it what could be categorized as Christian?

+ We see Jesus’ power, and we believe that he is the “something better” in our living

- the question is: are we carrying through with that “something better” as well as we could.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Movie: "Soul" -- beginning session

WHAT WE WANT

MARK 16:9-11

When Jesus had risen from the dead, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

Gospelthink: Mary Magdalene was a special person to me because she overcame a lot. Am I honestly trying to rid myself of my faults?

When Joe Gardner felt stuck in his job, he found some fulfillment as a piano jazz player in a jazz group. Almost immediately, however, he had an accident and found himself as a soul in the "Great Beyond." Frantically telling every soul he met that there had been a mistake and he did not belong where he was, he finally discovered a way to get back to Earth. But a mistake was made in transition, and he found himself with the soul and body of a female therapy cat while the cat had Joe's body and soul. To get back to Earth, Joe found himself in the "Great Before" and he had posed as a professor and had been assigned to complete the preparation of soul 22 who was the therapy cat. On Earth now, Joe and 22 became friends and Joe as 22 found happiness is what might be called the little things of life, with Joe as 22 gradually seeing how selfish he was in his approach to life.

According to the Gospels of Mark and John, the first person that Jesus appeared to after his Resurrection was Mary Magdalene. She is an interesting character in the Gospels, and there are many opinions about what kind of a person she was. What we know is that Jesus had cleansed her of seven demons, which usually meant that she had lived a life of sin and at some point, turned her life around. She became a devoted follower of Jesus, entering his inner circle. She was the leader of a group of women disciples who were present at the cross and at his burial.

We do not know the greatest demon or evil in her life, of course, but we would probably not be far of the mark if we identified it to be selfishness. Human beings tend to be people that want what will satisfy them. It began with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and is very much a part of our world right now, even the world of make-believe human beings.

Joe Gardner was the creation of talented artists, but he was the replica of a human being who could be any of us. In the mind of his creators, he finds himself in a place after he has died on his way to the "Great Beyond," or heaven or a place different from what he was used to. He did not want to be where he was. And it becomes obvious as he tried to get back to Earth. He finally achieved what he wanted but there were complications.

Joe Gardner's problem was in short selfishness. It is unfortunately our principal problem as well. We want what we think should be done, and when we do not get it, we complain, we sulk, we become self-righteous. And it becomes an attitude that is more or less unconscious--we do not even know it is there. And it takes over our lives.

Luckily Joe did some serious thinking, and began to see his selfishness. It is what must happen to every one of us.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, if we are honest with ourselves, we will see that perhaps the principal "demon" in our lives is the desire to satisfy self. Help us manage to do some serious thinking to discover how we are being selfish in the way we behave. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Perhaps, our primary problem is selfishness.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 50 minutes)
1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why?
2. In general, why is it important to consider Mary Magdalene as we study life here on earth?
3. The movie obviously presents the idea of life after death. Death is not a popular subject. Why is it so difficult to consider death?
4. What are the greatest evils in the world right now, and what can I do about therm?
5. What are some characteristics of a truly selfish person?
6. We do not know what heaven will be like, but in your mind, what are some things that you think should be part of "heaven"?
7. In your opinion, are there many people in heaven?
8. Joe finally discovered his selfishness by serious consideration of himself with regard to others. In general, when do human beings begin to consider their selfishness?