The Third Sunday After Epiphany
Holy Communion
This Week's Inspiration ~
From a commentary on Sunday’s Gospel;
the calling of Simon, Andrew, James and John:
What is often translated “repent” in Mark’s Gospel is actually from the Greek metanoeo, meaning “to change one’s mind, to turn, to go in another direction”. Jesus says “the time is fulfilled” (Mark 1:15). The word used here for time is not chronos, meaning time on the clock or calendar in the sense of chronology. The word is kairos, meaning the right time. Jesus is saying that circumstances are converging to make this the urgent moment for the kingdom. As Jesus begins his public ministry, he is making a turn in his life. He repents, not from sin, but in the sense of going in a new direction. He then calls Simon, Andrew, James and John. They immediately follow him. They made a turn in their lives. This also was a form of repentance, a turning, a looking at things differently, a change of mind. It is the change itself that matters.