We hear two of Jesus' favorite words in our Gospel today: Follow me! Where in the past these words were met with tremendous faith by the apostles, today they are met with sadness and rejection. We're talking about the rich young man who's unfulfilled longings bring him to the feet of Jesus. Diagnosing his restlessness, Our Lord calls him to leave behind his possessions, a cure that proves too burdensome to be carried out. Exploring the spiritual theme of detachment as well as the theological idea of sloth we discover that each of us today are just as prone to abandoning Jesus as the rich young man was years ago.

Jesus travels to Judea where he is not always well received and is immediately confronted by Pharisees as regards his view on marriage and divorce. Referencing Deuteronomy, the Pharisees make the case that Moses allowed for divorce but Jesus moves earlier in the Biblical account to make his argument, citing two verses of Genesis. From Our Lord's words we glean a radical view of marriage, one that excludes divorce but that also affirms the image of the Trinity and the tremendous dignity of marital love. In the end we find a God who is reckless in love and who desires that we be recklessly loving as well.

The apostles encounter a man performing exorcisms in Jesus' name though they do not know who he is. When asked his opinion, Our Lord's response points us to the outpouring of the spirit of God in the Old Testament and the prophetic words of Moses who longs for all of God's people to perform miraculous works. Continuing on in our Gospel we hear Jesus speak intensely about "stumbling blocks." Exploring the original Greek as well as the Church's teaching we uncover the true meaning of scandal and its serious ramifications while ending with a discussion of freedom and the need for Christians to valiantly resist sin.

We find ourselves in chapter nine of Mark's Gospel, following on the heels on Jesus' Transfiguration. Jesus has shown his glory, now he takes some time away from the crowds to give instruction specifically to the Twelve. What does he teach them? He teaches them about the cross, predicting for the second time not only his passion but his glorious resurrection and having heard them arguing who is the greatest he does not rebuke their desires but rather reveals to them the path to greatness, a path that requires humility and that is relevant and available to each one of us today

Having cleansed foods and thereby abolished many of the ritual purity laws that served to separate Jew and Gentile, Jesus intentionally travels into Gentile territory. He performs several miracles like the one recounted in our Gospel. Exploring the healing of the deaf man we discover an explicit link with the prophecies of Isaiah that allude to an ingathering of the Gentiles and mincing Jesus' words and actions we uncover both Sacramental and New Creation themes, themes that point back to the beginning of Genesis and that help us to recognize the many graces God showers upon us even now!

We head back into Mark in our Gospel today and into the thick of Pharisaic criticism. Jesus is asked why his disciples do not wash their hands before eating. To fully understand the Pharisees' charge we take a step back and explore the heart and history of the Pharisaic school of thought. What we find in the Pharisees are Jews zealous for the law of God but fixated on ancillary things, things that inevitably distort their judgment, corrupt their heart, and prevent them from seeing that which they've longed for most: the Messiah who's standing right in front of them.

Provided with two sets of first readings, the Church beckons us to look both backward and forward to understand our Gospel and the feast of the Assumption at hand. Diving into Luke as well as our Old Testament first reading we see the evangelist draw clear parallels between David's reception of the Ark of the Covenant at Jerusalem and Elizabeth's reception of the new Ark just outside Jerusalem. Then looking forward to our reading from Revelation we realize that just as Mary went up to Jerusalem at the visitation God brings her up to the new Jerusalem once and for all at her glorious assumption.

Katie is doing something different in this "mega episode" of Sunday Dive. Instead of splitting John 6 into multiple episodes as we read through it over the coming weeks, we pack it all into one long episode. Yes, that means they'll be a break from the podcast but only for a couple of weeks. We'll be back for a special episode for August 15th, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary!

The Twelve return from their initial missionary outreach, their success evidenced by the continually growing crowds. Unable to find time even to eat, Jesus invites the disciples to follow him to a place of solitude. The people, however, are undeterred and follow on foot, beating Jesus to his destination. What Our Lord does next shows the tenderness of his heart. Moved with compassion he provides for their needs and in so doing he continues echoing a new Exodus theme while taking upon himself the role of a new Moses and a new Joshua.

Jesus called the Twelve to himself in the beginning of Mark's Gospel. Now he sends them out two-by-two to do the very works that he has done. Exploring Our Lord's pre-departure instructions we discover several connections to not only the Old Testament but also first century culture. Through these connections we see Jesus distinguishing his followers from some (like itinerant Greek philosophers) but also associating them with others (like the Old Testament people of God). Through our Gospel we'll discover the Twelve acting in the person of Christ and in so doing inaugurating the New Exodus.