Today's First Reading is on Jonah. Recall that God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, present day Assyria, to warn the people that they need to change their ways and restore their relationship with God so as not to suffer the punishment from His hands. As a prophet, Jonah was obedient to God but in this instance, he directly defied God by sailing as far away from Nineveh as possible. As the story goes, he experienced the heavy storm at sea, was thrown overboard and finally, was swallowed whole by a big fish. In the three days he was inside the belly of the fish, Jonah prayed. Later, he was coughed out by the fish right on the shore of Nineveh. He dutifully went around town proclaiming, "Forty days and God's wrath will fall on Nineveh if you do not repent." All the people including the king wore sackcloth, asked for God's forgiveness and were saved from the impending punishment.
Did you ever wonder why Jonah tried to disobey God? Because Jonah knew that Nineveh (Assyria) would be used by God to punish his people, Israelites, for their unfaithfulness. True enough, in 721 BC, Assyria destroyed Israel.
"Forty days" appears in the Bible several times and is significant. For example, there were forty days of flood during Noah's time; forty years did the Israelites wander through the wilderness during the Exodus; forty days after His birth, Jesus was presented at the temple; forty days Jesus stayed in the wilderness during which time He was tempted by the devil and forty days after His resurrection, Jesus ascended to Heaven. In the Bible, the number 40 is indicative of "change."
The Gospel from Mark 1:14-20 records Jesus' call of the 12 apostles starting with Peter and Andrew and James and John. It is recorded that Jesus prayed before He went out to choose His apostles. In fact, He always prayed before executing an almost impossible work as in the raising of Lazarus from the dead. He had all the human emotions so that He needed the Father's guidance in every important task. He called Peter, Andrew, James and John and they responded immediately. The face of Jesus must have shown such heavenly countenance, divinely compelling since they answered at once. Remember, Jesus was a stranger, someone they had not seen or associated before. Without question or doubt, they answered the call to be Jesus' apostles.
There is a difference between a disciple and an apostle. A disciple is a learner, an apprentice, so to speak. An apostle is a chosen messenger sent with a special mission which can be rightfully named an authorized reprresentative. Jesus chose twelve (12) apostles so as to represent the twelve tribes of Israel which would be the nucleus of a new nation - a restored Israel.
Peter and Andrew answered Jesus' call by leaving their livelihood - their nets. James and John responded by leaving their family - father, Zebedee. Mark wanted to show that discipleship, ie, being a follower of Jesus sometimes entails renunciation of family and security of possessions. Caught between two factions, the main focus is on the Creator, not on His creations. Recall Philippinas 4: 19 " But may my God supply your every need according to His riches in glory in Jesus Christ." Why worry, just trust in God!
This Gospel points out that discipleship and repentance are tied together in Jesus' message. People who have submitted to wordly attractions and have strayed away from their covenant relationship with Him need to repent, to shed their old self, to change so as to return to God and His ways.
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