We might find the tone of Jesus puzzling in today's Gospel reading. He seems to dismiss his mother, the Virgin Mary, rather harshly. What are we to make of his words in this passage? As always, we must look at the theological, cultural, and biblical context of the passage to understand what Jesus is saying.
To begin, let us recall the 4th Commandment, which mandates that we honor our father and mother. If Jesus had disrespected his mother, whether in public or in private, he would have been guilty of a sin. We know that, being God Incarnate, Jesus was completely free of all sin. Thus we should dismiss the idea that his words to the Virgin Mary might have been disrespectful in some way.
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