Working for the Word

Focusing the Gospel

Key words and phrases: violent squall, Jesus was in the stern, rebuked the wind, Do you not yet have faith, Who then is this

To the point: The storm at sea is both a terrifying natural event and a metaphor for overwhelming difficulties that the Church encounters on its journey of discipleship. In either case Jesus is in the midst of his disciples urging them to greater faith, responding to their fears, and delivering them from danger. The disciples have yet to discover who Jesus is and trust in him; and so do we.

Connecting the Gospel…

… to the First Reading: Jesus invites the disciples to “cross to the other side.” During Ordinary Time we journey with Jesus, crossing from where we are to where he leads.

… to experience: Saints and mystics have described the difficulties of their spiritual life using such metaphors as a rocky road, arid desert, and the dark night of the soul. These, and the gospel's image of the storm, remind us that even perfect faith would not spare us from difficulty in following Jesus.

** From Saint Louis University