“Repent and believe in the Gospel. The Kingdom of God is at hand.” These are the first words Jesus speaks in the Gospel of Mark. They capture the essence of what he is about and what he asks of us: Repent, believe in the Gospel, in Him and then follow him. Some may interpret these words as a fearsome warning; though judgment is certain what these words convey is not threatening, but rather a hope-filled though challenging invitation.
Repent means more than simply being sorry for what we have done in the past. It means to be willing to change our minds, our actions and our lives. It is a call to conversion.
There is a legend about a woman who dreamed of entering heaven. She was told she would be allowed in if she brought the gift most valued by God. She was not sure what that would be. First she brought some drops of blood from a dying martyr, then coins given to the poor by a woman destitute herself, then a Bible used by a great preacher, finally she brought dust from the shoes of a missionary in a remote land. These were good she was told but not the most valued and so she was not yet welcomed into heaven.
One day she saw a small innocent boy playing by a fountain. A rugged man road up on horseback dismounted and came to the fountain to take a drink. The man noticed the child. That boy brought back memories of his own boyhood. Looking into the water of the fountain he saw his reflection of his now hardened face which reflected his hardened heart and suddenly he realized what a mess he had made of his life. Tears of repentance welled up and trickled down his face. The woman took some of those tears back to heaven and was received with joy. Heaven rejoices when the sheep that was lost is found. Repentance is a gift greatly valued by God. Jonah in the 1st reading proclaimed repentance. The people of Nineveh responded by turning from their old ways; and God rejoiced.
To repent is to reflect on ourselves honestly, ask what am I doing and more importantly what am I missing, or who am I missing. With tears if necessary to repent is to abandon old and routine ways as did the Apostles who immediately followed when Jesus called. Historians tell us that Peter, Andrew, James and John were likely not idle fishermen but part of a thriving business so dependent was the surrounding community on their fishing. Yet they immediately gave us their profession, left their father and hired help and answered the call of Jesus. He calls us as well.
Repent; yes, is the first step; but also believe in the Gospel. To believe, as one person put it, is to accept Jesus at his word, that God the Father is who Jesus tells us he is, love and mercy personified exampled by Jesus’ healing ministry and his sacrifice on the cross that we might repent and believe.
A four year old read the nursery rhyme about Humpty Dumpty who had a great fall. All the kings’ horses and all the kings’ men couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty back together again. The boy thought for a moment and declared, “Jesus could have done it.” To believe is to trust that Jesus can restore the fallen, the broken, us all. C.S. Lewis wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe in the sun, not only because I see it but because by it I see everything else.”
What is it that should affect our view of everything else? One scholar has suggested that Jesus offers us six gifts. There is the gift of truth; with his becoming man we see what God is really like and what is necessary for us to live moral and fulfilling lives. There is the gift of hope despite the swirls of our culture and our daily challenges; Jesus brings us the hope that beyond the struggling moments and mysteries of life there is more. There is the gift of peace; in Jesus we can come to a peace that allows us to live with the contradictions and temptations within ourselves and taunted by the evil one while striving to grow in holiness because he walks with us.
There is the gift of promise, the promise of mercy and forgiveness and the promise of a love so deep that even the cross cannot weaken it. There is the gift of immortality; for the faithful life is changed not ended with death. And there is the gift of salvation; in Jesus we receive not simply an escape from the past but a grace to live each day as changed people for whom eternal glory beacons. To repent and believe the gospel allows us to be people who exude joy confident in God’s love and then using the gifts of truth, hope, peace, promise, immortality and salvation to support each other.
Catholic Digest reported the story of a woman who gave birth to a beautiful little girl. While still in the hospital she was diagnosed with cancer. She wrote: “I was amazed at how everything could be so right and yet so wrong at the same time.” She couldn’t sleep. A nurse put her arm around her and assured her that she would soon be sleeping as soundly as her newborn. “The nurse asked me to close my eyes and picture something that brought me peace. I thought of Jesus and Mary. I thought of my husband and my baby whose round pink face reminded me of a candle burning brightly in a darkened room. While I thought of these images the nurse spoke softly and lovingly as a mother soothes her child. Eventually I drifted off . . .” She continued, “The long arduous journey to become cancer free started at the hands of a caring nurse who went beyond the call of duty to calm a frightened young mother at her darkest hour.” That is believing in the gospel and living it.
St. Paul reminds us in the 2nd reading that the world in its present form is passing away. None of us knows what tomorrow may bring. Someone wrote: “what I am is God’s gift to me. What I become is my gift back to God.” We can respond to the call of Jesus: repent, believe the Gospel and follow me if we choose to do so. May the Blessed Mother intercede for us that we may choose life, life in Christ.