Reflection for Sunday – September 8, 2024

Sue HowardSunday Readings Homilies

Readings: Isaiah 35: 4-7a; James 2: 1-5; Mark 7: 31-37 
Preacher: Susan Howard 
Video Reflection: click here

There are many people who are curious and maybe even skeptical about the teachings and parables of Jesus. The first disciples were, too. It took more than three years for them to grasp what Jesus was all about. So if you are among the doubters you are in good company.

Part of the teaching process Jesus used was to quietly, and without fanfare, heal the sick and bring justice to the poor. He did not want the healing powers to make him famous; he wanted to teach us about what it means to be free from all that ails us, spiritually, physically and emotionally.

In today’s Gospel, Mark writes the parable of the deaf mute. It is a parable of spiritual awakening. If we place ourselves in this parable, we can imagine ourselves as deaf and unable to talk. Living with that kind of impediment keeps us bound up in our own little world, separated from our family and community, no one really knows us, no one can ever get really close to us. The same can be said of many physical and mental illnesses and disabilities.

In this parable Jesus goes many miles out of his way to minister to people who did not share his Jewish heritage. He was not like them, but he wanted to know them, to hear their stories and to heal them. That story spread quickly. And so this man’s family and friends brought him to Jesus to have him cured.

For those who have not yet heard, you may be surprised to know that Jesus pursues you relentlessly, there is nothing Jesus wouldn’t do or places he wouldn’t go to know your pain and suffering.

For those who have heard God’s word and received grace and healing from God through a relationship with Jesus, I ask, have you gone out of your way to bring someone to Church or just out for coffee to share the story of your healing with others?

There is a very interesting interaction that takes place between Jesus and the deaf mute. First he touches him. In Jewish culture and tradition they believed that touching an impure person made you impure. Jesus rejects that notion.

Second, he puts his own spit on his finger and touches the man’s tongue. In many traditions and folklore there are two beliefs about spit. One is that it keeps away evil spirits (in this case the evil of original sin) and in others spit is thought to be curative and is mixed with mud or just rubbed on the injury. As a side note: breathing on someone is a form of sharing saliva.  It was God’s breath that filled creation with life. It is our breath that we share with our children, parents and family that forms the bonds of love. In Church services when we sing and chant and pray together we are also sharing our breath, our very life with others. During our first years with Covid we learned that our saliva travels at least 6 feet during regular conversations, sneezes travel up to 23 feet! So during times of pandemics our natural ability to bond and communicate are inhibited and we suffer loneliness and disease at being separated from our family friends and co-workers.

Finally, we should note that as part of this healing Jesus turns to the heavens, to God. He groaned, some say sighed. In any case he expresses an empathy with this man’s pain. He has touched him, shared his curative saliva and now he lifts all that is needed up to God. And he says “Ephphatha” (Be Opened!). This is an original Aramaic word, the same that was used when God opens the heavens in the creation story. It not only restores this man’s hearing and speech but opens up a pathway to new life. The man is unbound from his past woes; he experiences a freedom never before imagined. He can’t wait to tell others even though he was counseled not to.

Isaiah writes: “the lame will leap like a stag…streams will burst forth in the desert…”Oh how we hope and pray for that kind of freedom—not just for ourselves but for others, for friends, family and strangers.

Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit and inflame my heart with love and compassion. Make me attentive to the needs of others that I may show them kindness and care. Make me an instrument of your mercy and peace that I may help others find healing and unbound freedom in you.

Sue Howard
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