Saint Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Memorial)

Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother. 

Is Jesus really being dismissive of his family members, including his very own mother, Mary?   On the surface, it might seem so.   But if we understand this passage to mean that Jesus treated his close family members harshly, we are missing an important point about the kingdom he came to inaugurate.

Jesus took the occasion of his family’s interrupting him to show yet again how the kingdom of God changes everything.   It even invites us to reconsider the meaning of family!   By his words, Jesus showed us that “family” isn’t restricted any more to relations by blood or adoption or marriage.   “Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother,” Jesus taught (Mark 3:35, emphasis added).

Of course, we all have our immediate families and our extended families.   But Jesus is telling us that we are also members of the biggest, most extended family in history:   the household of God.   In this family, we are united not by human blood but by Jesus’ own blood shed on the cross and by the saving waters of Baptism.

And what a wondrous family it is!   We have God as our father, Jesus as our brother, and Mary as our mother.   We have the saints in heaven who intercede for us.   And here on earth, we have brothers and sisters—in our parish, at work, in our neighborhoods, and in our families—who are willing to walk alongside us, pray for us, and support us in our faith.   With God’s grace, we can do the same for them, loving and caring for them as we would our own blood relatives.

We might still wonder if Mary’s feelings were a bit hurt by Jesus’ words.   But remember, Mary was not only Jesus’ mother;   she was also his disciple.   As she pondered what it meant to follow Jesus, she must have realized that his mission was also her mission, his family also her family.   Was she ready to embrace Jesus’ new definition of what it meant to be family?   Of course!   May we do the same.

“Jesus, thank you for calling me to belong to your family.   Help me to love and joyfully serve my brothers and sisters in Christ.”

2 Samuel 6:12-15, 17-19
Psalm 24:7-10