Jesus Christ the savior destroyed evil and death; / made imperishable light and life shine through the Gospel (2 Tim 1,10). – R.

 First Reading: 1 Samuel 18,6-9; 19.1-7

Jonathan's friendship and charity save David. Jesus' miracles are signs of love, not displays of power. Only on the cross will Jesus truly be proclaimed Son of God, which is why he “sternly ordered them not to say who he was”. Reading from the first book of Samuel – In those days, 6when David returned, after having killed the Philistine, the women of all the cities of Israel went out to meet King Saul, dancing and singing joyfully to the sound of tambourines and cymbals. 7And as they danced, they said in chorus, “Saul has killed a thousand, but David has killed ten thousand.” 8Saul was very angry at this and did not like the song at all, saying: “To David they gave ten thousand and to me only a thousand. What do you still lack, if not royalty?” 9And from that day on he no longer looked kindly on David. 19.1Saul spoke to his son Jonathan and all his servants about his intention to kill David. But Jonathan, Saul's son, loved David deeply 2and warned him about this, saying: “My father Saul is trying to kill you; therefore he takes care tomorrow morning and hides in a hiding place. 3I myself will go out with my father, in the field, wherever you are, and I will talk to him about you, to see what he says, and then I will tell you everything I know.” 4Then Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul, his father, and added: “Do not harm your servant David, for he has never offended you. On the contrary, what he has done has been very beneficial for you. 5He risked his life by killing the Philistine, and the Lord gave a great victory to all Israel. You yourself were a witness and rejoiced. Why, then, would you sin by shedding innocent blood and having David killed for no reason?” 6Saul, hearing this and appeased by Jonathan's reasons, swore: “As the Lord lives, he will not be killed!” 7Then Jonathan called David and told him all this. He then took him to Saul, so that he could take his place again, as before. - Word of the Lord. Responsorial Psalm: 55(56) It is in the Lord that I trust and fear nothing. 1. Have pity and compassion on me, O God, † for there are so many who trample me underfoot / and aggressors oppress me every day! / My enemies continually trample me underfoot, / there are many who fight against me! – R. 2. From my exile you recorded every step, † in your bottle you collected every tear / and you wrote it all down in your book. / My enemies will retreat † on any day that I call upon you; / I am sure: the Lord is with me! – R. 3. I trust in God and will praise his promise. † It is in the Lord that I trust and fear nothing: / what could a mortal being do against me? / I must fulfill, O God, the vows I made to you / and I offer you a sacrifice of praise. – R. Gospel: Mark 3:7-12 Jesus Christ the savior destroyed evil and death; / made imperishable light and life shine through the Gospel (2 Tim 1,10). – R. Proclamation of the holy Gospel according to Mark – At that time, 7Jesus withdrew to the seaside together with his disciples. Many people from Galilee followed him. 8And many people also from Judea, from Jerusalem, from Idumea, from across the Jordan, from the territories of Tire and Sidon, came to Jesus, because they had heard about everything he did. 9Then Jesus asked his disciples to provide him with a boat, because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd him. 10In fact, Jesus had healed many people, and everyone who was suffering from any illness threw themselves at him to touch him. 11When the evil spirits saw Jesus, they fell at his feet, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” 12But Jesus sternly ordered them not to say who he was. – Word of salvation. Reflection: As an extraordinary phenomenon, Jesus attracts crowds from across the region. They came to him motivated by “all the things he did”. What was he doing? He announced the Good News of the Kingdom, healed the sick, cast out demons, forgave sins. Finally, he brought everyone the long-awaited liberation. A new era began in which the Messiah took on the situation of the oppressed people, listened to their complaints, welcomed their desires for a full life. And he stood in defense of the impoverished and marginalized. Even his adversaries recognized him as “Son of God”. Jesus, however, recommended that they “not disclose who he was”, since he did not come to compete with the leaders of the people, nor to take their place. He fought, in fact, for the entire society to be based on the practice of justice and fraternity.