Thursday in the Third Week of Ordinary Time, January 26, 2023

The Feast of Saints Timothy and Titus

Mark 4, 21-25

Jesus said to his disciples, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lamp stand? For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible; nothing is secret except to come to light. Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.” He also told them, “Take care what you hear. The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given to you. To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

“Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lamp stand?”  Lamps in use in Israel at the time of Jesus were made from pottery bowls to which were attached a tapering spout.  A linen wick was inserted to the spout after the fish or olive oil (which burned more brightly) was poured in.  After the wick was lit, the lamp would burn for an hour or more before needing to be replenished.  It was a very simple arrangement.  Lamps made in Israel were undecorated, whereas those produced by other peoples were very often painted and were decorated with images.  A pottery jar filled with olive oil was used to keep the light burning.  Both of these might or might not have handles.  The Lord, when speaking of the lamp here, does not specify whether it was lit or not.  An unlit lamp needed to be kept in a visible place so that it could be found easily when it grew dark.  The place needed to be prominent, as a given house might have only one lamp: at sunset, the people went to bed, they did not linger until late as we do today.  But if the Lord is speaking of a lit lamp, placing it under a bushel basket or a bed would not only be foolish but dangerous, as it could easily be knocked over and the house set on fire.  

We can assume that the Lord was speaking of a lit lamp, given what he says later.  Now, the lit lamp under a basket or a bed does no one any good and wastes the fuel, in addition to posing a hazard.  The lit lamp is to be put on the lamp stand positioned in a prominent place so that it can best cast its light.  It would not be set in a corner, for instance.  The sole purpose of the lamp is to shine light.  It is not a piece of art or a useless but interesting souvenir.  The light allows the people in the house or cave or a darkened street to see where they were, to stay safe, and to continue whatever activity they were engaged in, perhaps acting as watchers on the city streets and gates.  The Lord Jesus, in speaking to us of the lit lamp is likening us to the lamp, grace to the oil, and the faith to the light.  He is the one who buys the lamp with the price of his Blood, then fills it with the purest grace that will burn most brightly, and lights it with the fire of the Holy Spirit.  Our faith then should light up all around us.  And rather than setting us in place where our light cannot be seen, he sets us exactly where he wants us.  He uses us to banish the darkness of sin and ignorance, to allow others to see where they are and to seek the safety of the Cross.

“For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible; nothing is secret except to come to light. Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.”  Here the Lord explains that he hides no secret doctrines and speaks no unsolvable riddles or gibberish.  The truth about us and about God is Theon wide open to the world.  He specifically creates and trains a group of followers who know his doctrine exactly and are sent out to the world to teach it for free to anyone who will listen.

“To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”  Here the Lord speaks of the need to persevere in faith.  Temptation and trials offer the faithful the chance to grow in faith and virtue, and if they persevere, they do.  But those who hold back from full belief in god and in adherence to his holy will shall not be able to persevere, and what they do have will be lost.

We honor Saints Timothy and Titus today, men of great faith who followed St. Paul and were later appointed by him as bishops.  We pray to them that they intercede for us that God may fill us to the brim with his grace so that we may burn brighter and brighter here on earth and join the eternal Light in heaven.