13th ORD SUNDAY B Wis 1: 13-15; 2:23-24; 2Cor 8:7,9,13-19: Mk 5:21-43 The consequences of sin are suffering and death. One of the causes for suffering is SICKNESS IN THE BODY.
In general we have physical sickness, Spiritual Sickness and Psychological Sickness.
When a person is physically sick he becomes lame to his daily activities. To regain health he approaches the Physician for his assistance with medicine.
Spiritual and psychological sicknesses usually as they are result of the suffering from the sickness of anger, of enmity, of lust, of greedy, of money, of power etc. and the wounds done by the other people. Eventually these sicknesses become chronic when they are habituated and become part of our lives. When one is caught up by these sicknesses he is lost in that and lame to do his daily activities for, that occupies the whole self. In such condition we need to approach the Physician who is CHRIST HIMSELF. As the woman suffering from haemorrhages in the Gospel approached Jesus in Faith, we too need to approach him. When the woman came to Jesus for healing she did not touch him directly nor asked him to cure but touched his agent “his cloak”. We too, when we approach Jesus for our healing we need to experience his presence and power through his agents available now. A few of them to be mentioned: The Sacraments (received in proper manner), Eucharistic Adorations, The Word of God, personal prayers etc. Through these we need to feel the TOUCH OF Jesus; WE NEED TO EXPERIENCE THE PRESENCE OF Jesus. It is then the Power of Jesus flows through these agents and we are healed.
A woman approached the priest saying, “Father, I am habituated in a mortal sin. Therefore I stopped receiving Communion. Now I had a strong desire to receive. What to do?” the priest in reply said that it is simple for, she needs to make good confession and receive. She refused saying, “no Father, even if I make confession, I know that I am certain that I will live in the same sin. I don’t want to come out of it also. So how can I make confession? Yet, at the same time the desire urges me more and more strongly for the reception of Communion. The priest thought a while and said “make good confession, and you are made clean and holy. Then receive Communion. Remember from the moment you made confession till you go back to your sinful situation you are Holy and you are united with the Holy Lord, Jesus. Feel and enjoy that holiness and happiness even if it is for a few moments. Involve yourself completely in that joy. Repeat the same as often as you could”. It was after five years the women came to the priest again, saying that she has owned those joyful moments every time she had confession and communion, and it has taken long five years to come out of that sinful situation. Praise God. We too need to get healed of our various sicknesses approaching Jesus and experiencing his power and joy through his agents.
Secondly we need to assist others who are sick to death, to be healed. In the Gospel the daughter of Jairus is sick and that led her to death. To her Jesus gives life! There are many sicknesses in our lives that lead us to death. Judas Iscariot is sick for money and that led him to death. When one is sick of drinking or drugs that leads to death. If one is sick for revenge that leads to kill and eventually to his own death. If one is sick of distress, which leads to death. In such cases they are helpless. They can’t help themselves. As the sick girl in the gospel unable to approach Jesus, and in assistance her father did it for her and got her life. When Judas realized of his sin, entered into distress which led him to die, nobody is there to assist him to take him to Jesus who is dying on the Cross for Judas also. If only somebody assisted he could not have been lost. Similarly when people are sick to death we need to assist them and take them to Jesus. We need to bring them to the presence of Jesus. We need to assist them to feel and experience of Jesus’ power, love and care through: making them to participate in the Eucharist; to the regular reception of the sacraments; to the Devotional and charitable practices; to participate in adorations, group prayers and regular recital of Rosary; to make pilgrimages, etc.
When one assists in this manner,
it is definite that their sickness and wounds are healed and they come back to life. Hence this is our Vocation that
we are called to be the agents FOR THE MISSION OF HEALING & LIFEGIVING. -Fr John Raju Junjunuri