In today’s gospel passage, Jesus implies that it is doing the will of God the Father that makes us family to Jesus. He identified the faithful disciple, not by rank or position, not by talents or wealth, but by faithfulness to the will of God in the routine of our daily lives. Jesus asks us to approach all that we do as if we were in the framework of a universal family, with our neighbors as our sisters or brothers, as our mothers or fathers.
This story seems to show Jesus overriding traditional family relationships in favor of the new harmony of His followers with Him. When His mother and other relatives seek to see Him, one might presume that He would drop everything else and give His full attention to them. Apparently, there are times when we should be with our biological family and other times when we should share our love with outsiders. Jesus gives examples of both of these moments.
In today’s story He gives more attention to His extended family; but later in time, in John’s gospel, as He hangs dying on the Cross, He ensures that His mother will be cared for (John 19:26-27). Even this final concern for His mother is linked to His relationship with the entire Church. Here, as in other gospel stories, Mary represents the Church, the center of a praying community (Acts 1:13-14).
The natural response of children can teach adults a lot about what it means to be Church. In general, kids like to be encompassed in a close family circle and most of them can also effortlessly engage with complete strangers. They teach us the meaning of Jesus’ words as He looked around at those seated in the circle and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother."+
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