Befitting Easter, today’s gospel narrates the journey of Magdalene, Peter and the ‘other disciple whom Jesus loved’ from empty tomb to belief in the resurrection. 
 
It is generally said that it is the evangelist, John. In the Gospel of John, this unnamed disciple certainly has a symbolic character and that should be understood. 
 

Some Greeks were among the pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for the Passover. They had learned from their fathers to worship idols. As soon as they discovered the God of Israel, they embraced the Jewish religion. Their spiritual restlessness is revealed by the need they felt to see Jesus. 
 

The house of prayer had been transformed into a market place during the time of Passover. Many pilgrims from distant countries to Jerusalem made sacrifices and renouncements for years to afford. Traders could accumulate more gains than throughout the rest of the years. It was difficult for the temple priests to resist the temptation to get into a so profitable turnover.
 

The transfiguration scene is set in a secluded place, on a high mountain where Jesus led three of his disciples. They will be witnesses of his agony in Gethsemane (Mark 14:33). Mark stresses the fact that they were alone. 
 
The fact that Jesus reserved His revelation to some disciples and that he eventually told them not to disclose it indicates they were given a share of a very significant experience but still too high to be comprehended by all. 
 

In Jesus’ time curing a leper was equivalent to raising the dead. The priests could only “declare pure” a leper, not “make him pure.” They are not able to cure him because the healing of leprosy was reserved to God (2 Kings 5:7). 
 
The healing of a leper was therefore, the proof that the Messiah has arrived in the world.
 

Today’s gospel narrates the first healing miracle of Jesus in Mark’s gospel. It is not chosen at random. In Mark’s intention it constitutes the synthesis of the whole work of Jesus for the people.
 

While the eyes of those awaiting for the saving intervention of God facing Jerusalem, God set his eyes on a tiny village lost in the mountains of Galilee, such an insignificant place that in the whole of the Old Testament, it did not rate even one mention.
 

At the end of the first century AD when John wrote his gospel, there were still many people who called themselves disciples of John the Baptist. So, the evangelist clarifies the position of the precursor vis-a-vis Christ.
 
The Baptist was not the light of the world. He was just the first to recognise “the true light that enlightens everyone” (John 1:9). He was not deceived by the flattery of being called the messiah. He kept himself faithful to his mission.
 

To be alert and to keep watch are the key words of this passage. The evangelist invites all members of his communities to be vigilant in waiting for the coming of the Lord.
 
What does to be alert mean? Why such insistence on the night? Why does the master, instead of coming during the day, arrive suddenly when nobody expects him? Who is the doorkeeper? Who is the master? Where did he go? What powers has he left to his servants?
 

In reflecting on the parable of the talents, we need to clarify some common misconceptions. It is not a moral lesson on honesty or how to invest the money, but rather on the commitment of putting to good use the treasures that belong to everyone.
 
Jesus did not have low esteem for the one who was given only one talent.