Mary in the Gospel of Mark: Part V: Who Are My Mother and Brothers and Sisters?
Fr. J. Patrick Gaffney, SMM
The last three installments of Mary in the Gospel of Mark considered the mention of Mary in Mk 6:3; Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon and are not his sisters here with us? And they look offense at him. With this article, we begin the study of the only other reference to Mary in Mark; Chapter 3, verses 31-35.
Mary in the Gospel of Mark
Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers ore outside, asking for you“. Jesus replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers”? And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother”. (Mk 3: 31-35).
We would be taking these verses out of their immediate context if we did not stress that they form the conclusion of a unit that begins with verse 19b – 21. The he went home; and the crowd came together again so that they could not even eat. When his own heard of it, they set out to seize him for they said, “He has gone out of his mind”.
Verses 22-23 form a sort of interlude, giving “time” for his own (v. 21) to arrive on the scene (v. 31). (Read chapter five of Mark and you will notice he employs the same literary technique in recounting the story of the cure of the daughter of Jairus.) As the reader awaits for the arrival of his own, Mark inserts a story about scribes who blasphemously declare Jesus to be possessed by the prince of devils, Beelzebub. The interlude is in harmony with the thrust of this section which deals with the misunderstanding and opposition Jesus encounters while at the same time holding the admiration of the crowds.
My Family Is . . .
The entire unit reaches its climactic finale in the pronouncement by Jesus on who forms his new family of the kingdom of God; those who do God’s will. They, and they alone, are his brothers and sisters and mother. Those who do not fulfill this criterion, whether they be religious leaders, of his times or even his own, are not His disciples. The point of the whole section is, then, that neither authority (the scribes) nor blood-relationship of itself (his mother and brothers) suffice to be a member of Jesus’ family of faith. (cf Mk. 10:29-30). What is essential is to do the will of God. From verse 19b on, Mark has been leading up this this final sentence of chapter three, the important clarification concerning who constitute Jesus’ “real” family.
The Holy Family: Italian Painter: Giorgione: Approximately 1499 or 1500
This series originally utilized a black and white copy of this painting within the original Queen of All Hearts Magazine. It resides in the National Gallery of Art, in Washington, DC as part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection.
In other words, the original Greek permits us to understand that it was the people and not necessarily the family who suspected his mental balance. Moreover, it is even possible to translate the Greek in the sense that it was the crowd which was “beside itself” (with enthusiasm),
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. . . Whoever Does God’s Will
Where does Mary fit into the picture? First of all, it is evident that she is not a principal character in this section. This is in keeping with Mark’s entire Gospel which never directly tells us something specific about Mary. Nonetheless, Our Lady does figure into the teaching of this unit for she is mentioned as one of those who were standing outside of the crowd – along with other relatives – wanting to speak to Him.
Two principal Marian questions spring from the incident as narrated by Mark (the modifications made by Luke and Matthew will be seen when studying their Gospels).
- First, is Mary among his own who are apparently concerned about his safety amidst the emotions of the crowd – and depending on how we read this section – also concerned about his sanity?
- Second, is Mark’s Gospel telling us that Mary and the other relatives are or are not members of the “real” family of Jesus?
Within the remainder of this article, we will begin to answer the first of these two questions.
Is Mary Part Of His Own?
Everyone will instinctively respond that Mary is definitely within the “new” family of the kingdom for she is described by Luke as among those “who hear the word of God and keep it”. (Lk.11:28). And it would generally be presumed that Mary is not among those concerned about the sanity of her Divine Son. However, suppose that Mark were the only Gospel. How would we understand who Mary is from this section, taken on its own, without the important context of all the other Gospels as lived by the Church?
First, is she among those whom Mark groups together as his own (verse 21)?
If so, it would appear that she also wanted “to seize him”, so concerned about His sanity. The question cannot be ignored because many – basing themselves on this section – assert that Mary did wonder about her Son’s mental balance.
A few clarifications are needed here. Who are his own who go out “to seize him”, (or restrain or take charge of him)? Check your own bible and see how verse 3:21 is translated. Some versions have “his friends”, others, “his relatives” , others keep to a more literal translation of the Greek, his own; i.e.. those ordinarily around him. This would appear to mean primarily his relatives. Moreover, his own who set out (v. 21) are identified at the close of this section when Mark speaks of those who arrived (v. 31); his mother and his brothers. The more probable meaning of his own would, therefore, be his family, or his relatives. And Mary is among them.
Who Is Part of His Own?
That Our Lady is concerned about her Son offers no problem whatsoever. In fact, it would be mighty strange if she was not alarmed at the sight of the crowds pressing upon her exhausted Son. It could be said that Mark beautifully brings out the deep concerns of a mother for her only son.
But is the next test saying more than this? Does Mary believe that Jesus is “out of his mind”? Again, read your English translation of this verse #21. Notice that the primary difference of the rendition of the Greek is whether his own were declaring him “out of his mind” or as the New Revised Standard Version has it, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind“.
Ambiguity in the Greek Translation
In other words, the original Greek permits us to understand that it was the people and not necessarily the family who suspected his mental balance. Moreover, it is even possible to translate the Greek in the sense that it was the crowd which was “beside itself” (with enthusiasm), although this rendition does appear forced. Another obscurity in the text; what precisely is the meaning of the Greek verb which we variously translate as “beside himself”, or “out of his mind” or “lost his senses”?
Although the ambiguities in the text are evident, it does appear more likely that the Gospel is referring to a grave concern of Jesus’ family. He was giving himself whole heartedly to the proclamation of the kingdom; in doing so he was incurring the wrath of many leaders of the people and holding the crowd spellbound. They wondered what had gotten into him. Is this also the thought of Mary? If we limit ourselves to Mark alone, it is more presumable that he is joining Mary with the general thinking of his own. Nonetheless, this is but one opinion. The ambiguity of Mark’s Gospel concerning Mary remains.
How Much Did Our Lady Know About Her Son?
However, it is possible – as many uphold from these verses of Mark – that she too is wondering if something has happen to Jesus as he begins his public ministry with so much enthusiasm from the crowds and so much opposition from others? Is it possible she wondered whether Jesus was “besides himself”, that “he had gone out of his mind”?
These questions, arising from a study of Mk. 3:19b-35 touch on a fundamental point which is so often raised at discussions on Our Lady; how much did she know about her Son? It is a question which will be considered in the next article within this series.
