Homily

After leaving the desert of Judea for Galilee, Jesus does not stop at Nazareth but chooses to stay in Capernaum, a city in the middle of an important route uniting two great urban centres, Tolemaid and Damascus. Mark writes that, upon arriving, Jesus goes immediately into the synagogue to preach. We might say that he goes to work at once, without hesitation, and with the precise intention of teaching God’s wisdom to the city. Moreover, this was the very reason for which he had come. The Gospel is the leaven of a new life for all; it is not reserved to only a few, nor should it remain at life’s margins. The cities of men and women need it. Unlike Matthew and Luke, Mark does not report the teachings of the beatitudes, but prefers to underscore the authority with which Jesus teaches. He writes, "They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." Capernaum was full of scribes, doctors of the law, and theologians, but no one spoke with the same authority as Jesus, that is, using words that were decisive for people’s lives and that required committed choices. It was impossible to remain indifferent to his teachings: those who listened were as if obliged to make a choice. The numerous scribes, who certainly were not at a loss for words, did in fact abandon the crowds to the mercy of either themselves or the temper of the times.
In reality, we too, live in a similar situation today. Our cities are deeply in crisis in terms of values and behaviour. Often, opposing beliefs and cultural viewpoints that are, at times, contradictory live simultaneously even within the same person. We might say that one of the characteristics of modern-day society and of our cities is to have many beliefs and maybe no culture at all, to the point that we assume it is more admissible to have a polytheistic city model rather than a secular one. Everyone seems to have his or her own god, temple, scribe, and preacher. The problem with the polytheistic city is that it lacks a "teacher," someone who teaches with authority.
In such circumstances, it is easy to be subject to "unclean spirits." They subdue our heart and refuse to have their dominion disrupted. In the episode that Mark narrates, the spirits possessing the man in the synagogue shout to Jesus, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?" It is their radical opposition to those who want to disturb their unconditional power over the hearts of people. They are not opposed to Jesus’ works in theory, but to the fact that he intervenes in their lives. To summarize, they are radically opposed to the Gospel’s authority over life. This happens each time that we don’t allow the Gospel to change our heart or, in any case, to speak authoritatively words about our behaviour. Jesus came to free men and women from all types of slavery. For this reason, he shouts loudly, "Be silent, and come out of him!" The impure spirit goes away. In front of the numerous evil spirits that subjugate men and women today, we need Jesus’ cry to ring out against them once again. Every disciple is called to this challenge: to once again introduce the Gospel’s authority in their own lives and those of others. Now is the time to shout out the Gospel from the roof-tops so that the oppressing spirits can be expelled from us, and a new culture may arise: the culture of mercy. This can occur only if all the faithful and the entire community of the church find the courage to propose again the Gospel "sine glossa," i.e. without additions, as Francis of Assisi used to say. This is the only authority that "commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him" (Mk 1:27).