The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary, today, the Feast of Saint Mark, evangelist, is an opportunity to reflect on the events in our lives that have re-focused our experience of love and devotion through encounter with people and Nature.
The Reading from the First Letter of Peter proclaims Advice to the Community.
* [5:5–11] The community is to be subject to the presbyters and to show humility toward one another and trust in God’s love and care (1 Pt 5:5–7). With sobriety, alertness, and steadfast faith they must resist the evil one; their sufferings are shared with Christians everywhere (1 Pt 5:8–9). They will be strengthened and called to eternal glory (1 Pt 5:10–11).
* [5:5] Younger members: this may be a designation for office-holders of lesser rank.
* [5:12] Silvanus: the companion of Paul (see 2 Cor 1:19; 1 Thes 1:1; 2 Thes 1:1). Jews and Jewish Christians, like Paul, often had a Hebrew name (Saoul, Silas) and a Greek or Latin name (Paul, Silvanus). On Silvanus’s possible role as amanuensis, see Introduction.
* [5:13] The chosen one: feminine, referring to the Christian community (ekklēsia) at Babylon, the code name for Rome in Rev 14:8; 17:5; 18:2. Mark, my son: traditionally a prominent disciple of Peter and co-worker at the church in Rome, perhaps the John Mark referred to in Acts 12:12, 25; 13:5, 13; and in Acts 15:37–39, a companion of Barnabas. Perhaps this is the same Mark mentioned as Barnabas’s cousin in Col 4:10, a co-worker with Paul in Phlm 24 (see also 2 Tm 4:11). (1 Peter, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 89 laments the defeat of the Davidic king.
* [Psalm 89] The community laments the defeat of the Davidic king, to whom God promised kingship as enduring as the heavens (Ps 89:2–5). The Psalm narrates how God became king of the divine beings (Ps 89:6–9) and how the Davidic king became king of earthly kings (Ps 89:20–38). Since the defeat of the king calls into question God’s promise, the community ardently prays God to be faithful to the original promise to David (Ps 89:39–52).
* [89:3–5] David’s dynasty is to be as long-lasting as the heavens, a statement reinforced by using the same verbs (establish, stand) both of the divine love and loyalty and of the Davidic dynasty and throne, cf. Ps 89:29–30.
* [89:7] The sons of the gods: “the holy ones” and “courtiers” of Ps 89:6, 8. These heavenly spirits are members of God’s court.
* [89:11] Rahab: a mythological sea monster whose name is used in the Bible mainly as a personification of primeval chaos, cf. Jb 9:13; 26:12; Ps 74:13–14; Is 51:9.
* [89:13] Zaphon and Amanus: two sacred mountains in northern Syria which came to designate the directions of north and south. Tabor: a high hill in the valley of Jezreel in northern Israel. Hermon: a mountain in Lebanon, forming the southern spur of the Anti-Lebanon range. (Psalms, PSALM 89 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Longer Ending to the Gospel of Mark presents The Commissioning of the Eleven.
* [16:9–20] This passage, termed the Longer Ending to the Marcan gospel by comparison with a much briefer conclusion found in some less important manuscripts, has traditionally been accepted as a canonical part of the gospel and was defined as such by the Council of Trent. Early citations of it by the Fathers indicate that it was composed by the second century, although vocabulary and style indicate that it was written by someone other than Mark. It is a general resume of the material concerning the appearances of the risen Jesus, reflecting, in particular, traditions found in Lk 24 and Jn 20. (Mark, CHAPTER 16 | USCCB, n.d.)
Jay Carney comments that Mark’s gospel is marked (no pun intended) by nothing if not breathless urgency. As I tell my undergraduate students, the Greek term “euthus”, typically translated in English as “immediately,” dominates Mark’s gospel. Mark’s Jesus is a man of action, healings, exorcisms, and confrontation with the powers of his day, the agent of the reign of God that is now “at hand” (Mark 1:14). Jesus’ coming demands an immediate and personal response of discipleship. The dramatic nature of Mark’s proclamation of Jesus Christ continues in today’s gospel, thought by many scholars to be a later addition.
I write this reflection from Kenya where I have been moved by the faith of lay-led Small Christian Communities (SCCs) which provide the grassroots foundation of the Catholic Church in eastern Africa. Meeting in homes, these communities share on the upcoming Sunday gospel, pray the Rosary, reflect on their social context, and provide charitable support for each other. What strikes me are the faith and trust members express in God’s saving power, often expressed in what today’s psalm calls a “joyful shout,” even as these “brothers and sisters throughout the world undergo the same sufferings” (1 Peter 5:9). As one woman in a rural SCC proclaimed, “by showing love to one another, we create peace where there is no peace.” This is surely a message our church and world need to hear today. (Carney, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes The Gospel proclaimed to all creation, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"The command to the apostles to be witnesses to him in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and even to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8) was not addressed exclusively to those to whom it was immediately spoken. They alone would not be the only ones who would carry such an enormous task to completion. Similarly he seems to be speaking to the apostles very personally when he says: 'Behold I am with you even to the end of the world' (Matthew 28:20), yet who does not know that he made this promise to the universal church which will last from now even to the consummation of the world by successive births and deaths?" (excerpt from LETTER 199,TO HESYCHIUS 49) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Peter 5:5-14 notes about Mark: “What a journey!” Mark could have given up after his embarrassment with Paul and Barnabas. He could have returned home to Jerusalem and settled in with his mother and the believers who gathered in her home (Acts 12:12). But the message of the gospel was too compelling; Mark had to keep sharing it.
So he went from being a failed missionary to the adopted “son” of the first pope, to the author of the first Gospel, to the founder of Christianity in one of the greatest cities in the world.
Jesus didn’t give up on Mark, and he won’t give up on you. So don’t let your past mistakes define you. Keep trusting in the Lord and his perfect plan for your life.
“Jesus, thank you for being as faithful to me as you were to St. Mark!” (Meditation on 1 Peter 5:5-14, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments that Peter ends the first letter with a paranesis, a series of instructions for a good life. Live in humility, be sober and vigilant in his final greeting from “Babylon” a pseudonym for Rome. He sends a greeting from Mark “my son” who was travelling with Peter. Most of Mark’s Gospel is from Peter. Ironically in Ch 16 the longer ending of Mark’s Gospel is proclaimed today. This was likely not written by Mark himself. The “shorter ending” concludes the Gospel with the women leaving the tomb. This first ending was not satisfactory. The passage for today was inspired by Matthew. Friar Jude notes we consider it to be inspired, written in the name of Mark.
Father Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces co-founder of the Wild Church Network and Seminary of the Wild, Victoria Loorz, who writes of love as intimacy with another, whether with a person or part of the created world.
To quote farmer and poet Wendell Berry, “People exploit what they have merely concluded to be of value, but they defend what they love….” [1]
This is a courtship of the particular. Of the many others in the world, some—or maybe just one—will choose you. Pursue you, even. We love all by authentically loving the one or the few who are near us: those who give themselves to us to whom we open our hearts and love back. To regard a wild one as a sacred other, one who has her own wisdom and relationships and concerns beyond our encounters with her—this is entering into conversation as a practice of love, which is participation in the presence of the sacred, of Christ. (Rohr, n.d.)
We are inspired by the Spirit, in the tradition of Mark, to be humble and brave as we share the fullness of life as followers of Jesus Way.
References
Carney, J. (n.d.). Daily Reflection. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-april-25-2026
Mark, CHAPTER 16 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/mark/16?15
Meditation on 1 Peter 5:5-14. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://wau.org/meditations/2026/04/25/1549976/
1 Peter, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1peter/5?5
Psalms, PSALM 89 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/89?
Rohr, R. (n.d.). For Love of the Earth: Weekly Summary. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/for-love-of-the-earth-weekly-summary/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Go and Preach the Gospel to the Whole Creation. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved April 25, 2026, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/
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