Open to Surprises and Gifts

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 6:1-6.

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples. 
When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue,
and many who heard him were astonished. 
They said, “Where did this man get all this? 
What kind of wisdom has been given him? 
What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! 
Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary,
and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? 
And are not his sisters here with us?” 
And they took offense at him. 
Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and among his own kin and in his own house.” 
So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,
apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
He was amazed at their lack of faith.

---

Reflection

Jesus’ statement, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house,” is one of the most famous and quoted. Working prophetic signs and uttering prophetic words, Jesus is amazed at the lack of faith from His own people, the very people who knew Him most. They thought they knew Him as He grew up in their midst, but the wonders that Jesus was doing and saying simply broke through their calcified image of their neighbor. They could not take that Jesus was breaking through their preconceived ideas of Him.

Perhaps, the people from Jesus’ town were already comfortable with their images of their neighbors that anyone who tries to go beyond the comfortable levels are looked upon with suspicion. Even with Jesus’ miracles they then refused to believe. Their lack of openness led to a lack of faith.

Many of us fall into the same mistake of putting people into our own mental boxes and labelling them, stacking them up in our garage of biases. We even fall into the mistake of putting God into a box and expecting Him to act according to our own image of Him. But people and God are mysteries who will always challenge our measures. Persons, both our neighbors and God, are gifts that we continually peel-off layers of wonders. Our Gospel reminds us today to be open: open to people, open to God, and open to surprises.

The Touch of Jesus

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 5:21-43.

When Jesus had crossed again in the boat
to the other side,
a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea.
One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward.
Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, saying,
"My daughter is at the point of death.
Please, come lay your hands on her
that she may get well and live."
He went off with him,
and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon him.

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors
and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak.
She said, "If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured."
Immediately her flow of blood dried up.
She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him,
turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who has touched my clothes?"
But his disciples said to Jesus,
"You see how the crowd is pressing upon you,
and yet you ask, 'Who touched me?'"
And he looked around to see who had done it.
The woman, realizing what had happened to her,
approached in fear and trembling.
She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth.
He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has saved you.
Go in peace and be cured of your affliction."

While he was still speaking,
people from the synagogue official's house arrived and said,
"Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?" 
Disregarding the message that was reported,
Jesus said to the synagogue official,
"Do not be afraid; just have faith."
He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside
except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James.
When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official,
he caught sight of a commotion,
people weeping and wailing loudly.
So he went in and said to them,
"Why this commotion and weeping?
The child is not dead but asleep."
And they ridiculed him.
Then he put them all out.
He took along the child's father and mother
and those who were with him
and entered the room where the child was.
He took the child by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum,"
which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise!"
The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around.
At that they were utterly astounded.
He gave strict orders that no one should know this
and said that she should be given something to eat.

---

Reflection

Our Gospel this Sunday portrays Jesus as the healer. He goes around manifesting His power and authority over human ills, and in our story today heals a woman suffering from hemorrhage and restores the life of a young girl. Jesus who preaches the coming of the Kingdom backs up His claim with marvelous signs of healing.

These healings happened through the experience of touch. The woman fought her way through the crowd, and with faith in her heart, believed that touching just His clothes would heal her. This continues on today in the many devotees and believers who, wishing that their prayers be granted, touch objects and relics that are connected to the Divine and the Saints. Jesus took the girl’s hand and raised her up from death, telling her to “arise”!

Our encounter with Jesus should not be limited to lip service but should touch us in our deepest consciousness. Jesus’ wishes to touch those whose hearts have been bleeding for years and those who have fallen into spiritual death. His touch leads to faith, and from this faith all fears are dispelled and restores our wholeness. From the dirt of our fears and sickness, Jesus extends His hands to touch us today, lifts us up with His consoling words, “arise”! 

Prophet even in Birth

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 1:57-66, 80.

When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child

she gave birth to a son.

Her neighbors and relatives heard

that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,

and they rejoiced with her.

When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child,

they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,

but his mother said in reply,

"No. He will be called John."

But they answered her,

"There is no one among your relatives who has this name."

So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.

He asked for a tablet and wrote, "John is his name,"

and all were amazed.

Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed,

and he spoke blessing God.

Then fear came upon all their neighbors,

and all these matters were discussed

throughout the hill country of Judea.

All who heard these things took them to heart, saying,

"What, then, will this child be?"

For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.

The child grew and became strong in spirit, 

and he was in the desert until the day

of his manifestation to Israel.

---

Reflection

Prophets are a special breed of characters in the Bible. They are the human messengers of God to His people. Today, we celebrate the birth of St. John the Baptist. Luke’s Gospel portrays Mary as related to Elizabeth making Jesus and John “cousins” in the wide sense of the word. But our Gospel today does not dwell on their familial connection but on something that transcends bonds of blood.

John the Baptist is the herald of the Messiah, making him a prophet of the Incarnation of God. Luke wrote his Gospel drawing from Old Testament prophecies. The circumstances of his birth, the naming, and the anticipation of the child, all point to the role that John will take before Jesus begins His public ministry. What is beautiful about this story is the stress on blessing and hope.

If John were a blessing to his aged parents, he was to announce the great blessing that is to come for Israel. This blessing was brought about by Divine interventions seen in the marvels surrounding his birth but finds its climax in the pouring forth of God’s spirit on the child. He “grew and became strong in the spirit”. Like the dawn announcing the rising of the sun, the birth of John the Baptist was the prelude to joyful announcement of Jesus’ birth. Even in his birth, John points to Jesus, the Messiah, the God Incarnate, in whom the fullness of God’s Spirit dwells.