31 July, 2026 -- Friday of the 177th week
Lv 23, 1. 4-11. 15-16. 27. 34-37; Matt 13, 54-58
Homily
Around the age of thirty, Jesus had left his native village of Nazareth in Galilee to go to Judea. The immediate reason for this is not given in the Gospel. In any case, at that time, as always, there was a movement of people towards Jerusalem, the capital, especially from the hinterland of Galilee. Jesus was in Jerusalem just as the whole of Jerusalem was descending towards the Jordan, in the region of Jericho, to be baptised by John. He was baptised himself and heard the voice of the Father: ‘You are my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased’. Then John said to his disciples, ‘Behold the Lamb of God.’ Several of John's disciples join Jesus, and he calls others. After fasting for forty days in the desert, he set off again for Galilee, where he preached and healed the sick, first in the large town of Capernaum. Finally, one day he returned to his village and began teaching in the synagogue. Everyone was surprised. This surprise clearly showed that up until then, nothing in Jesus' life in Nazareth had set him apart. He had no doubt faithfully celebrated all the festivals of the year with his parents and relatives. No doubt he had also regularly gone to the local synagogue to listen to the teaching of the doctors of the Law. So when he began to preach and heal the sick, people wondered: ‘Where did he get this wisdom and these miracles?