Saturday January 24, 2015

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity - Mark 5:1-20

This passage always catches my attention as a particularly disorienting one. Jesus enters a new, and possibly strange, territory; he encounters an unpredictable, possibly dangerous person; and he enacts a healing of striking power. If we just focus for a moment what it would have been like to witness Jesus interact with this man possessed by demons, we must ask if we would have turned away, and wished to be somewhere else.  

The herd of pigs indicates that we are not in primarily Jewish territory. Furthermore, a cemetery was a ritually unclean site. When the man with the unclean spirit “saw Jesus from a distance,” bowed down, and shouted to him, we might take it to emphasize just how immediately the man recognizes who Jesus is. And indeed, such an act of recognition is remarkable, especially in the Gospel of Mark.  But the mention of distance also indicates that Jesus, or at least those with him, may have had the very human reaction of caution. After all, the man appeared unpredictable, strong, and even violent, given his broken shackles and bruises.

While we are thrown off balance by the unfamiliarity and unpredictability of the location and by the wildness of the man with the unclean spirit, there is at least one more disorienting element to come. Jesus engages in a dialogue with the spirits. The spirits recognize Jesus, and ask to be sent into the herd of pigs. And Jesus agrees to their request! Though the ultimate healing of the man is clearly a demonstration of Jesus’ power, I find it surprising that he does not take “total” control, but rather responds positively to their request. As I reflect on this, I wonder whether Jesus was seeking to truly understand the nature of these spirits. Perhaps they have a character and a history that Jesus wanted to understand. Perhaps they are not simply “evil,” as we might suppose. I am left to wonder how we are to understand the spirits that are around and among us today. 

Jeremy Bergen

Jeremy Bergen is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Theology and the Director of Theological Studies at Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo.