Believe & Receive
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Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
Mark 11:11-26 – Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple area. He looked around at everything and, since it was already late, went out to Bethany with the Twelve.
The next day as they were leaving Bethany he was hungry. Seeing from a distance a fig tree in leaf, he went over to see if he could find anything on it. When he reached it he found nothing but leaves; it was not the time for figs. And he said to it in reply, “May no one ever eat of your fruit again!” And his disciples heard it.
They came to Jerusalem, and on entering the temple area he began to drive out those selling and buying there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. He did not permit anyone to carry anything through the temple area. Then he taught them saying, “Is it not written:
My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples?
But you have made it a den of thieves.”
The chief priests and the scribes came to hear of it and were seeking a way to put him to death, yet they feared him because the whole crowd was astonished at his teaching. When evening came, they went out of the city.
Early in the morning, as they were walking along, they saw the fig tree withered to its roots. Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” Jesus said to them in reply, “Have faith in God. Amen, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it shall be done for him. Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours. When you stand to pray, forgive anyone against whom you have a grievance, so that your heavenly Father may in turn forgive you your transgressions.”
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“They came to Jerusalem, and on entering the temple area he began to drive out those selling and buying there.”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
The actions that Jesus takes in the Gospels may seem strange to us. And of course we don’t—we can’t—understand all of God’s actions, but just because we don’t understand them doesn’t mean they don’t make sense. They always make sense. We will look at two of these actions today from the Gospel. The first is the cursing of the fig tree, and the second is the cleansing of the temple. The two events are related to each other. The Gospel writer shows this by weaving the two stories together. In the faith and tradition of the Jews, as well as in their Scriptures (our “Old Testament”), the fig tree represents Israel. God is patient with Israel for hundreds, even thousands, of years. Then Jesus is patient with the Jews in His three-year public ministry to them. But Israel firmly rejects Him…. They reject God.
On His way to and from the Temple, Jesus sees the fig tree. The fig tree, like Israel’s weak faith lived in the Temple, is fruitless. After all His patience, and all His attempts to reach His chosen people, God accepts the decision of Israel to reject Him. And He is saddened by it. Earlier that week Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem wept for them. Because of their faithlessness, within a generation (in the year 70 A.D.), Jerusalem is burned and the Temple is completely destroyed, never to be rebuilt. This is an example of the radical consequences of human freedom. God begs for our openness to Him so that we can be filled by Him and be happy. But God also allows our rejection of Him (though apart from Him we cannot be happy). God loves us and is inviting us…but that is only part of the story. Our response determines the rest.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above. (Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
Reminder for Parents: Pier is just meant to be a jumping off point. The real goal is that you pray & eventually use the fruits of your personal prayer as the content of your family’s prayer. Duc in altum.
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