Mark’s Gospel begins in the wilderness. A weird place for a Gospel to begin! The Judean desert is a unique place. Rocks upon rocks inside the never-ending intertwining wadis typical of the area. A place marked by marvellous rock formations, sculpted by the sandblasting of the wind. To the adventurer who travels here in great awe and respect, this place offers a humbling experience! Don’t let the heat of the day deceive you! Pack a good thermal sleeping bag. You might wake up during the early hours of the night and hear the crackling of the frozen dew under your feet! Plan your journey well, calculating the amount of water you would require to the last millilitre. In a backpack of around twenty kilos, every extra gram multiplies itself exponentially under the heat of the sun! The route of the journey is dictated by a harsh law: “where there is no water there is no life”. Perennial springs are the lifeline. Miss one, and you will find yourself fighting for your life! Sacred Scripture describes the desert as a horrid and desolate place (Deut 32:10). The wilderness exposes you; it accentuates your limits; it brings out the truth within. You must be fully alert, weary of any possible danger lurking around every rock formation. 

The gospel (euangelion) of Jesus Christ begins in such a barren and dangerous place, where life is constantly put to the test. Euangelion – a Greek word meaning “good news”. How ironic! Good News in such a desolate place! It’s as if this irony is forged in the very etymology of the Hebrew word for desert: "midbar", a word meaning “desert”, but also meaning “mouth” the instrument of speech, cognate of "dabar", the verb “to speak” and the noun “word”. The desert has always been a place of opportunities in the Bible.

In the desert the cry runs with the echoes: “prepare the way of the Lord”. Who can give heed to such a cry in the desert? The scorpions? Maybe this outcry was not just uttered in the physical desert of Judea, but also in the desert of human life! The people of Jerusalem and all Judah were going out in the desert to listen to the Baptist as if seeking to quench their thirst there. The Gospel began in the desert of their lives. May it begin in the desert of my life! I find myself asking: What areas in my life constitute a desert? A difficult situation? A psychological issue? A difficult person? An injustice? The desert in my life can be a myriad of things that are weighing me down. Many times I find myself crying out to God: “this desert is going to claim my life” (see Exodus 16:2-4). 

And yet, within the twisting dry wadis life offers, let my ears hear the prophet’s word: “Comfort, comfort my people... speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended” (Is 40:1). Ironically God’s place of courtship is the desert: “I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her” (Hos2:14). And yet, in this long journey, I often find myself craving for a shortcut. In my hunger I pray to God: “change these stones into bread!” There is never a reply... only Isaiah’s words echo softly: “the wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom” (Is 35:1).