Today is the feast of Mark the evangelist.  He is the writer of the first and shortest gospel.  His gospel is the most vivid and informal because it was probably the first recorded (AD 60-70).  In some ways it is the most descriptive Gospel, yet he writes with a sense of urgency, as if Christ’s return is close at hand. 

Mark’s gospel passage (Mark 16:15-20) speaks of visible wonders achieved through faith like expelling demons and drinking deadly poison.  The phrase in this passage that grabs my attention is Jesus’ words to “Go into the world and proclaim the good news to all creation.”  At times I ponder how well I proclaim the good news of Jesus.  I can easily identify times that I have left that for priests to do, not wanting to be bothered with the role or responsibility of proclaiming the good news.  I give excuses like I do not want to stand out or offend those who do not believe, yet, the followers of Jesus went to non-believers when they proclaimed the good news.  They stood out for the good news even to the point of death.

Another excuse I use is that I don't know what good news to proclaim.  The good news seems different for different people.  To some, Jesus dying on the cross is good news, to others it's his resurrection, and still others, it’s the fact that God became human and dwelt among us.  I bet you could continue this list of the good news of Jesus.  Not knowing what good news to proclaim, I have remained silent, even when little opportunities have presented themselves.  These are the confessions of a young adult Catholic.  Sure there are many more excuses that have been used in the past, but today’s gospel calls you and I to proclaim the good news of Jesus.  Without excuses or limits, the risen Christ is calling upon us to not just spread the message, but proclaim the good news.  It may be slightly different good news depending on whom you interact with, but we all are presented with situations where the good news needs to be proclaimed.  My prayer today is that we, too, are given the grace and courage of Mark the Evangelist so that others will know the good news of Jesus through our words and actions.