It comes from the same word as manual, manifestation, manual, to be touched by the hand. In our common language we often talk about being touched, to be deeply touched. We will refer to a person who's having mental or emotional problems as being out of touch. Epiphany season is when we reflect upon how we have been touched by the presence of God through the manifestation in Jesus Christ. Today's reading from the Gospel of Mark informs us that this manifestation in Jesus was made through his teaching which was made with authority.
Authority comes from the same word as author.
It is a word that indicates something that creates, something that causes an increase. An authority is one who authors and there's two kinds of authority. There's the authority that comes with an office, a judge, a president, a priest, has authority because by the law or by the community's giving of the authority they have in their office the ability to influence, to increase, to cause to happen. But there's another kind of authority and that's an innate, an inside type of authority. Jesus spoke with authority.