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Mark 2:1-12
 | Reading the Text:
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| Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
 | The
Five Gospels Parallels, John W. Marshall, University of Toronto. |
| Comparative primary texts about Sin and Justice from Mishna and
Babylonian Talmud. At Mahlon H. Smith's Into
His Own: Perspective on the World of Jesus, Rutgers University. |
|
"Sickness and Sin," The Jesus Database, an online annotated inventory of
the traditions concerning the life and teachings of Jesus. Dr. Gregory C.
Jenks, FaithFutures Foundation. |
| VII, 11-12, 18-22;
Tatian's Diatessaron
(c. 150-160). |
| Chapter
X, On Baptism, Tertullian
(c. 198) |
| I.2, Paedagogus,
Clement of Alexandria (c 200) |
| Chapter
XXI, Chapter
XXII, On Modesty, Tertullian
(c. 217) |
| From the
Catena
Aurea, Patristic Commentary by St Thomas Aquinas. |
| Commentary on a Harmony of the
Evangelists, John Calvin, 1558:
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| From the Geneva Notes.
 | "By healing this man
who was sick from paralysis Christ shows that men recover all their lost
strength in him through faith alone." |
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| From
Matthew
Henry's Commentary.
| "True faith and strong
faith may work in various ways; but it shall be accepted and approved by
Jesus Christ." |
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| From Wesley's Notes.
| "They uncovered the
roof - Or, took up the covering, the lattice or trap door, which was
on all their houses, (being flat roofed.) And finding it not wide
enough, broke the passage wider, to let down the couch." |
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| From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible
(Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
| "It is remarkable that
all the three narratives call it "their faith" which
Jesus saw. That the patient himself had faith, we know from the
proclamation of his forgiveness, which Jesus made before all; and we
should have been apt to conclude that his four friends bore him to Jesus
merely out of benevolent compliance with the urgent entreaties of the
poor sufferer. But here we learn, not only that his bearers had the same
faith with himself, but that Jesus marked it as a faith which was not to
be defeated--a faith victorious over all difficulties. This was the
faith for which He was ever on the watch, and which He never saw without
marking, and, in those who needed anything from Him, richly rewarding." |
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| From The People's
New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
| "The whole incident
illustrates: (1) The Divine power of Christ. He could assert that he
forgave sins without blasphemy. (2) The difference between Christ and
his apostles, none of whom claimed to forgive sins (see Acts
8:22-24). (3) It affords a test for all priests who claim to forgive
sin. If they possessed power to forgive sins they would have power also
to relieve the body of the physical consequences of sin." |
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| Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
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Comments
(commentary) and
Clippings
(technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican
Diocese of Montreal. |
|
A Brief Commentary on the
Gospel of Mark, Chapter 2:1 - 3:6, Carl W. Conrad. (Click superscript numbers
for commentary.) |
|
"Jesus
Heals a Paralytic Lowered through a Roof," Michael A. Turton's
Historical Commentary on the Gospel of Mark, "a
complete verse-by-verse commentary on the Gospel of Mark, focusing on the
historicity of people, places, events, and sayings in the world of the
Gospel of Mark." |
|
"First
Thoughts on Year B Gospel Passages in the Lectionary: Epiphany
7," William
Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
| "Perhaps that is what
some of us and our congregations need: to be interrupted by human need
to remind us what we are about. In the minds of the many
‘paralytics’ of need in our societies: what do we have to do to be
heard? Unroof the churches!" |
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|
"The Paralytic and His Four Friends,"
"Hunger for Healing,"
Gospel Analysis, Sermons from
Seattle, Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle,
Washington. Detailed background and exegesis. |
|
"The Morally Disabled,"
Larry Broding's
Word-Sunday.Com: A
Catholic Resource for This Sunday's Gospel. Adult Study, Children's
Story, Family Activity, Support Materials.
| "What does it mean to be 'disabled?' Is
it possible to be morally 'disabled?' How?" |
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|
Exegesis,
Epiphany 7B, by
Richard Donovan at lectionary.org.
| "Note that the forgiveness of sins does
not cure this man's paralysis." |
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|
Sermon
Preparation Thoughts and Questions by Wesley White, 2006. |
|
Wellspring of
the Gospel, Ordinary 7B, Catherine McElhinney and Kathryn
Turner, Weekly Wellsprings. |
| "The
Interruption," a Reflection on Mark 2:1-12, William R.G.
Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia, February, 2000.
| "And I look out and I see
paralysed men and women, paralysed congregations, paralysed
ministries and I want to cry; ‘Your sins are forgiven. Rise take
up your bed and walk!’ And I treasure those moments of intrusion,
when the heavens are torn apart and the Spirit descends and I rise
from the water and I know there is hope." |
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|
Marginally Mark, by Brian McGowan, Anglican priest in Western
Australia.
| "Are we tuned in enough to Jesus / faith issues people
around us are wrestling with? Outsiders & insiders?" |
|
| Mark
2:1-12, in Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary's An
Exegetical Study of the Common Lectionary, coordinated by Prof.
John E. Alsup, features rough translation, disposition, immediate
context, broader context, hermeneutical bridge, and contemporary
address.
| "A parallel to the healing
stories of Jesus can be found within the teachings regarding the
Asclepius Cult (Freedman, 475-476). Asclepius, of human and godly
decent, learned the arts of healing and reportedly raised a human
from the dead. Later he was stricken by the gods and made a god
himself. In the practices of the cult there was a three day
purification process that is similar to Jesus' pardoning of sins.
The pattern, therefore, of forgiving sins and healing would have
been already established among Romans." |
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| Exegetical
Notes
by Brian Stoffregen, at CrossMarks.
| "How many of our congregations
are "paralyzed"? Unable to move? Stagnant? Stuck? What
keeps them that way? What would it take for them to know and believe
that the power and authority of God is in their midst? What is the
mat that they live on? their comfortable place to stay? that carries
them? that they think they need? What would it take for them to get
off the mat and carry it?" |
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|
"They
Come..." Jerry Goebel, One
Family Outreach. "Focus on scripture from a justice perspective." Exegesis, study, and teen study
and activities.
| "Our Lord does not offer quick fixes or a way out. He
offers eternal solutions by inviting God in. In our outreaches to the
incarcerated, I would be remiss if I said; 'God must wait until you are
released before you can serve him.' Instead, I ask them; 'Are you a
prisoner of the county or a prisoner for the Lord? Your choice will decide
whether your time here is spent as a criminal in the system or a disciple
of the King.'" |
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|
"Jesus'
Authority to Forgive Sins,"
Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible
Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed
textual notes. |
| "That
You May Know," analysis and reflection by
Bruce T. Martin, in Sabbatheology by The Crossing Community
of St Louis.
| "Jesus healed the paralytic
"in order that you may know/believe" -- not in the
healing, but in Jesus. Just so, whenever we heal/love, we do so in
order that they may believe -- not in the work, but in Jesus." |
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"God
Freely Forgives (Mark 2:1-12)," John C. Purdy. Chapter 4 of God
With a Human Face (1993), republished at Religion
Online.
| "The liberation of the
paralytic points beyond itself. And to what? What is it that we are to
know? Jesus tells us plainly: "That you may know that the Human One
has authority on earth to forgive sins." This word is addressed
both to the rebellious, unbelieving hearts of the scribes and to the
naive, trusting hearts of those who brought their friend on the pallet.
That word is this: Emmanuel brings forgiveness; God freely forgives
sins. That is the primary meaning of the story of the paralytic." |
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| Articles & Background:
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"Mark
2: Healing of a Paralytic,"
"Miracles of
Jesus," wikipedia. |
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"Jesus and
Fishing," Daniel P. Schrock, Windows to the World of Jesus: Studies
of Mark's Gospel. (Continue to click on "next" at bottom of the page for
Class 3 to work through the material.) |
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"Miracle? Or Not?" Norma Everist and Burton Everist, The Lutheran,
1999.
| "The virgin birth and the Resurrection are accepted as
miracles, but casting out demons is often interpreted as first-century
psychotherapy. On what basis do Lutherans decide which miracles to accept
in faith and which to rationalize?" |
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|
Capharnaum, featuring
information and images from 19 seasons of excavations conducted by the late Fr.
Virgilio C. Corbo ofm and Fr. Stanislao Loffereda ofm. |
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| Articles in
ATLAS Journals. (Direct link when you are
subscribed and logged in to
ATLASerials online collection of Religion and Theology Journals.):
| Blomberg, Craig L.,
"The New Testament Definition of Heresy (or When Do Jesus and the Apostles
Really Get Mad?)," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society,
2002. |
| Gaiser, Frederick J.,
"'Your Sins Are Forgiven...Stand Up and Walk': A Reading of Mark 2:1-12 in
the Light of Psalm 103," Ex Auditu, 2005. |
| Garland, David E.,
"'I Am the Lord Your Healer': Mark 1:21-2:12," Review and Expositor,
1988. |
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| Reviews: |
| Sermons:
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"By Any Means
Necessary," Otis Moss III, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago
Sunday Evening Club, 2008. |
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"When a Room Is More Than a Room,"
19 February 2006,
David Zersen, Göttinger Predigten im Internet: Every Sunday Sermons based on the
RCL by a team of Lutheran theologians/ pastors. |
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"The Paralytic and His Four Friends,"
Sermons from
Seattle, Pastor Edward F. Markquart,
Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington. |
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"God Is in the Details,"
the Rev. Dr. J. Bennett Guess,
Day 1, 2003. |
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"The Unreality of
God," the Rev. Dr. Robert Dykstra, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago
Sunday Evening Club, 1999. |
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"Forgiveness,
Healing and Wholeness,"
John Jewell, 2000. |
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"So What Did You Get Out
of Worship This Morning," the Rev. William Carter, Day 1,
2000. |
| Father
Andrew M. Greeley, "Priest, Author, Sociologist," Commentary and
Homily
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| The Healer of Hurts: Mark 1:40 - 2:12, by Ray C. Stedman.
Text or
Real Audio. |
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| With Children:
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"Grab a Corner
of the Blanket," Charles Kirkpatrick, Sermons4kids.com. |
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"Friends,"
Fr. Max Bowers, Kid's Church. |
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"Fixing a Hole,"
Jim Kerlin, childrensermons.com. |
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"Doug Proves a
Disability Is Not Crippling," children's story by Larry Broding, word-sunday.com. |
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"Jesus Heals a Man
Who Can't Walk," Sunday School
Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc. |
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"Through the
Roof,"
children's study, puzzles, coloring sheet, etc. Higher Praise Christian
Center. |
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"Crossword on Mark
1 & 2," Don Crownover's Bible Puzzles. |
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"Jesus Heals the Lame Man,"
online computer java-based coloring pages
from Grace Baptist Church of Feeding Hill. |
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| Drama:
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| Liturgy:
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| Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
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Clip Art Images:
Mark 2:1-12, Misioneros Del Sagrado Corazón en el Perú. |
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Mark 2:1-12, at
Cerezo Barredo's weekly gospel illustration.
Liberation emphasis. |
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Mark 2:1-12, Liturgical Drawing,
Maria d.c. Zamora,
Claretian Resources, Philippines. ("Download and use
these for free.") |
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Clip Art:
Jesus Healing the Lame Man, Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld woodcuts, World Mission
Collection, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. |
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| Hymns and Music:
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| Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's
Art Index:
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| Movies scenes with the following themes,
listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
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| Study Links and Resources for the Book of Mark |
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