Communal Punishment

Jan. 31: Memorial of Saint John Bosco, Priest

Sometimes the sins we commit have a knock-on effect, harming not just ourselves, but others around us, event he whole community. That’s what happened with King David in the first reading. But it’s also possible for a whole community to reject God, as happens in the Gospel.

Reading 1

2 Sm 24:2, 9-17

King David said to Joab and the leaders of the army who were with him, "Tour all the tribes in Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba and register the people, that I may know their number."

Joab then reported to the king the number of people registered: in Israel, eight hundred thousand men fit for military service; in Judah, five hundred thousand.

Afterward, however, David regretted having numbered the people, and said to the LORD: "I have sinned grievously in what I have done. But now, LORD, forgive the guilt of your servant, for I have been very foolish."

When David rose in the morning, the LORD had spoken to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying: "Go and say to David, 'This is what the LORD says: I offer you three alternatives; choose one of them, and I will inflict it on you.'"

Gad then went to David to inform him. He asked: "Do you want a three years' famine to come upon your land, or to flee from your enemy three months while he pursues you, or to have a three days' pestilence in your land? Now consider and decide what I must reply to him who sent me."

David answered Gad: "I am in very serious difficulty. Let us fall by the hand of God, for he is most merciful; but let me not fall by the hand of man."

Thus David chose the pestilence. Now it was the time of the wheat harvest when the plague broke out among the people. The LORD then sent a pestilence over Israel from morning until the time appointed, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beer-sheba died.

But when the angel stretched forth his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD regretted the calamity and said to the angel causing the destruction among the people, "Enough now! Stay your hand." The angel of the LORD was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking the people, he said to the LORD: "It is I who have sinned; it is I, the shepherd, who have done wrong. But these are sheep; what have they done? Punish me and my kindred."

“Numbering the people” is a way of saying they belong to the government. Exact numbering would allow the king to centralize power, extract taxes, conscript soldiers, and on and on.

And while David is the king, he’s not God. Israel does not belong to him.

So, God gives him a range of punishments, two of which punish the whole society, and one that punishes him directly. David selfishly chooses one that hurts all of Israel.

That’s the problem with national leaders—their wrongdoing can harm the entire population. David is still better than many, however. When he sees the people’s suffering with his won eyes, he finally repents of his selfishness.¹

Responsorial Psalm

PS 32:1-2, 5, 6, 7

R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD,"
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
For this shall every faithful man pray to you
in time of stress.
Though deep waters overflow,
they shall not reach him.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
You are my shelter; from distress you will preserve me;
with glad cries of freedom you will ring me round.
R. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.

While it offers a good model for confessing sins, this passage skips over the third and fourth verses—

Because I kept silent,^* my bones wasted away;
I groaned all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength withered as in dry summer heat.

This happens to a lot of us, fearing to confess our sins, out of shame or guilt. But those are the exact reasons we should go to confession!

In fact, did you know that if you ask a priest to hear your confession, any time, anywhere, they’re supposed to do it, unless they have an extremely urgent and serious matter to attend to. There’s absolutely no excuse not to go, so that God will preserve you from your distress.

Alleluia

Jn 10:27

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Jesus knows us, and we should hear his voice. But do we always?

Gospel

Mk 6:1-6

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples. When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.

Fun fact: this is the only passage that refers to Jesus as a carpenter, and not just a carpenter’s son. (Although, the former can be inferred from cultural context.)

It’s hard to impress your family, even when you’re the Messiah. They remember changing your diapers; they’ve seen you fall down and scrape your knees. When you’ve watched someone grow up, it’s hard to accept that they’ve grown up.

Mark’s version of this story differs from Luke’s and Matthew’s in the detail that “he was not able to perform any mighty deed there.” Yesterday, the bleeding woman was cured simply because she believed in Jesus. But Jesus’ home town and extended family had no faith in Him.

Do you have a perception of someone in your life locked in place? Are you unable to see them in a different way, older more mature, kinder, more patient, less judgmental? It might not be a kid, but someone who was an adult when you were a kid. Or someone you haven’t seen in a long time.

Maybe now’s the time to re-think the way we see them.

1. You can compare or contrast this with many modern politicians, if you like.