Q: Why do they bury mothers-in-law 18 feet down, when everyone else is buried 6 feet down?
A: Because, deep down, they really are very nice people.

Q: What is the ideal weight for a MIL?
A: About 2.3lbs, including the urn.

“I bought my MIL a chair for Christmas, but she wouldn't plug it in.”

We’ve all heard the jokes (you can thank me later for not featuring ones more coarse than these), and we can thank St. Mark for reminding us that this sort of humor is more than just a byproduct of modernity.

This Sunday we observe Mark as he chooses to tell us about a very special healing. Right after he tells us how Jesus healed a demon-possessed soul, and right before Jesus heals a leper, we learn that the Son of God heals a mother-in-law.

But, of course, this is more than just an ancient joke.

You and I remember the societal basement women occupied in Jesus’ day – their status came solely through relationships with men. Women, like lepers, were relegated to the outer courts of the temple. And a wife or a mother might have some importance, depending on the importance of a son or husband, but to think she would be known through her son in law?

With all of the ill people pounding on Jesus’ door for help- the rich man’s son, the mayor’s nephew, not to mention the multitudes that could never make it to see him – why would Jesus even bother with someone’s mother in law?

For those contented with the status quo, who wanted a Messiah who would preserve the present world order, who were happy with a God who blessed a the rich and powerful and shoved aside the poor and most vulnerable, we see that Jesus came to take the world in a different direction.

From the start Mark seems to tell us that the joke was on them.