Jesus the Healer heals us to be whole and holy
My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
In the Gospel today we heard of Jesus curing Peter’s mother-in-law in Capernaum, and curing many others who were sick. (Mark 1:29-39) Jesus, who healed so many one evening in Capernaum, is willing to heal you and me in this Mass and every holy sacrifice of the Eucharist. The greatest moment for healing is when you receive Jesus in Holy Communion, when you and Jesus are united , ask him in faith for the healing you need.
As we journey though life there are ups and downs. When we are knocked down, we need a pick-me-up. No matter what way you are knocked down, Jesus is there to pick you up.
It is not only sickness that can knock us down. We can be knocked down emotionally and psychologically. We can be knocked down by the hurts others inflict on us and by what they say or do to us. It is not always true to say that “Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me.” Names, words, attitudes also hurt. On those occasions we also need a pick-me-up and on those occasions Jesus is also there to pick us up.
Recall the motto of the Jubilee year 2000, “Jesus Christ, the same, yesterday, today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) No matter when you were hurt, remembering that yesterday, today and tomorrow are the same for Jesus, ask him to walk back in time with you to the day when you suffered a particular hurt or received the news of your illness.
Jesus cares about you more than anyone and does not want you to remain wounded and hurt. He wants you well and at peace to enjoy life. No one wish for you like that of Jesus.
The word "healing" in today's usage goes beyond recovering from medical illness; it also covers situations arising from tragedy, misfortune, bereavement, marital breakdowns and so on. Today's readings present Jesus as "Healer" in both the physical and the spiritual sense.
Increasingly, with our complex living styles, the need for spiritual healing is greater than the need for physical healing. We always cry out “no one understands me. Where is my future full of hope?”
Today, as in the time of Christ, the real healing mission is to restore people spiritually; to have them know that in spite of failure, forgiveness, or spiritual healing, is at the heart of the Christian response. To know that a spirit of resignation is also an important aspect of healing; when our prayers are not answered the way we asked and wished for, our attitudes do not turn to rebellion or denial. With Christ our prayer becomes "Not my will, but yours be done". The letting go of prejudices and taboos with regard to those around us is also part of the healing process.
By his presence, Jesus brought wholeness and holiness to those with whom he came in contact.
Job endured great physical distress and pain but listen to how he speaks of his suffering:
My kinsfolk and my close friends have failed me;
The guests in my house have forgotten me;
My servants count me as a stranger…
I have become repulsive to my wife,
Loathsome to the sons of my own mother.
Even young children despise me…
All my intimate friends abhor me,
and those whom I loved have turned against me.(job 19.14-22)
Job suffered greatly in his body but his greatest pain was the rupture in the network of his relationships with family and friends and God.
Indeed, one might say that physical illness begs to be cured while social relationships, impaired by sickness, need to be healed – and the healing of relationships does not depend on the cure of illness.
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, We may be unable to cure the ills of the world, our nation, the church, our parish or our families: cures may not be ours to dispense.
But healing is at our fingertips, always, if we are willing to reach out, to touch, and to allow others to reach out to touch us, if we are willing to let go the things that hinder and paralyze our relationships, to let go the things that tear at the fabric of our secular and social and parish life.
Late Pope John Paul II the great has noted several times, quoting Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, "the glory of God is the living man"! If Christians are serious about their Christian life, they will pray.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
In the Gospel today we heard of Jesus curing Peter’s mother-in-law in Capernaum, and curing many others who were sick. (Mark 1:29-39) Jesus, who healed so many one evening in Capernaum, is willing to heal you and me in this Mass and every holy sacrifice of the Eucharist. The greatest moment for healing is when you receive Jesus in Holy Communion, when you and Jesus are united , ask him in faith for the healing you need.
As we journey though life there are ups and downs. When we are knocked down, we need a pick-me-up. No matter what way you are knocked down, Jesus is there to pick you up.
It is not only sickness that can knock us down. We can be knocked down emotionally and psychologically. We can be knocked down by the hurts others inflict on us and by what they say or do to us. It is not always true to say that “Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me.” Names, words, attitudes also hurt. On those occasions we also need a pick-me-up and on those occasions Jesus is also there to pick us up.
Recall the motto of the Jubilee year 2000, “Jesus Christ, the same, yesterday, today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) No matter when you were hurt, remembering that yesterday, today and tomorrow are the same for Jesus, ask him to walk back in time with you to the day when you suffered a particular hurt or received the news of your illness.
Jesus cares about you more than anyone and does not want you to remain wounded and hurt. He wants you well and at peace to enjoy life. No one wish for you like that of Jesus.
The word "healing" in today's usage goes beyond recovering from medical illness; it also covers situations arising from tragedy, misfortune, bereavement, marital breakdowns and so on. Today's readings present Jesus as "Healer" in both the physical and the spiritual sense.
Increasingly, with our complex living styles, the need for spiritual healing is greater than the need for physical healing. We always cry out “no one understands me. Where is my future full of hope?”
Today, as in the time of Christ, the real healing mission is to restore people spiritually; to have them know that in spite of failure, forgiveness, or spiritual healing, is at the heart of the Christian response. To know that a spirit of resignation is also an important aspect of healing; when our prayers are not answered the way we asked and wished for, our attitudes do not turn to rebellion or denial. With Christ our prayer becomes "Not my will, but yours be done". The letting go of prejudices and taboos with regard to those around us is also part of the healing process.
By his presence, Jesus brought wholeness and holiness to those with whom he came in contact.
Job endured great physical distress and pain but listen to how he speaks of his suffering:
My kinsfolk and my close friends have failed me;
The guests in my house have forgotten me;
My servants count me as a stranger…
I have become repulsive to my wife,
Loathsome to the sons of my own mother.
Even young children despise me…
All my intimate friends abhor me,
and those whom I loved have turned against me.(job 19.14-22)
Job suffered greatly in his body but his greatest pain was the rupture in the network of his relationships with family and friends and God.
Indeed, one might say that physical illness begs to be cured while social relationships, impaired by sickness, need to be healed – and the healing of relationships does not depend on the cure of illness.
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, We may be unable to cure the ills of the world, our nation, the church, our parish or our families: cures may not be ours to dispense.
But healing is at our fingertips, always, if we are willing to reach out, to touch, and to allow others to reach out to touch us, if we are willing to let go the things that hinder and paralyze our relationships, to let go the things that tear at the fabric of our secular and social and parish life.
Late Pope John Paul II the great has noted several times, quoting Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, "the glory of God is the living man"! If Christians are serious about their Christian life, they will pray.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
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