One word that gets a bad rap in our society is “authority.” I guess that we have heard about so many instances where “authority” has been misused that we tend to think that all authority is bad or criminal! If we back away and take another look, I think that we would agree that “authority” is necessary in our lives…even in families. Without it, there would be confusion, disarray, and lawlessness. In today’s passage of the Holy Gospel, Mark describes one sample Sabbath day in the life of Jesus. He joins in public worship in the synagogue as a practicing Jew, he heals the sick, he drives out evil spirits and he prays privately. People immediately noticed that Jesus spoke with authority and healed with divine power. Jesus explained the Scriptures with complete confidence, and when questioned by people He answered with authority. He used his real or authentic authority to teach, empower, liberate, and heal others. This, of course, is authority used for good! This short passage of the Gospel also speaks of an “unclean Spirit.” The evil spirit mentioned in today’s Gospelrecognized Jesus as the messiah and acknowledged him as such. Jesus commanded the evil spirit harshly, using strong words and tones (aka “he spoke with great authority”): "Be quiet! Come out of him!" And the man was cleansed of the unclean spirit. This was another reason why Jesus developed a reputation for speaking with authority. We know from the entire Gospel that Jesus did not use his authority and divine power to rule and control people. He came to make people free. So, let us approach Jesus with trusting faith so that he mayfree us from the evil spirits that keep us from praying and prevent us from loving others and sharing our blessings with others. Jesus also frees us from all the 'evil spirits' of fear, jealousy, envy, addictions, compulsions, selfishness, anger, resentment and hostility. May he free us from all those spirits which make us deaf, dumb, blind, lame and paralyzed, physically and spiritually. Open YOUR heart to Jesus and you can be made clean too! Kenneth L. Woodward writing in NEWSWEEK magazine gives us a glimpse of what Christ's coming meant to the world. He writes, "Whether we like it or not, Christ's life radically changed human culture throughout the world . . . Before Jesus came, the world was ruled by the 'might makes right' theory. But Jesus' teaching about humility and turning the other cheek redefined our views of human character, of war, of masculinity. Jesus' commitment to the poor, to women and children opened the way for civil rights and equality for women. Marriages became more equitable. Also, it was a common practice in Roman families to kill female babies. Sociologist Rodney Stark notes that evidence exists that among at least 600 ancient Roman families, less than a dozen had more than one daughter. But Christians valued the life of all people, whether male or female, and prohibited the killing of any children." But the revolution is not complete. We still live in a pre-Christian world. There is still too much hatred, too much violence, too much debasement of human dignity. “If you are comfortable in Jesus' presence, you simply do not see him as he really is.” GOSPEL QUESTION OF THE WEEK: All of us have a certain degree of power/authority. Are you using yours to build people up rather than crush them?