Liturgical day: Sunday 23rd (B) in Ordinary Time
Gospel text (Mc 7,31-37): Again Jesus set out; from the country of Tyre He passed through Sidon and skirting the sea of Galilee He came to the territory of Decapolis. There was a deaf man who also had difficulty in speaking was brought to him. They asked Jesus to lay his hand upon him. Jesus took him apart from the crowd, put his fingers into the man's ears and touched his tongue with spittle. Then, looking up to heaven, He groaned and said to him, «Ephphetha», that is, “Be opened”. And his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly. Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone, but the more He insisted on this, the more they proclaimed it. The people were completely astonished and said, «He has done all things well; He makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak».
«They asked Jesus to lay his hand upon him»
Fr. Fernando MIGUENS Dedyn
(Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Today, the liturgy takes us to contemplate the healing of a «deaf man who also had difficulty in speaking» (Mk 7:32). As in other cases (the Bethsaida and Jerusalem blind men, etc.), the Lord surrounds the miracle with a series of outward motions. In such miracles, the Fathers of the Church see the overemphasized harmonic involvement of the Humanity of Christ. An involvement developed in a double way: one, the “approach” and the closeness to us of the Verb incarnated (the touch of his fingers, the depth of his gaze, his sweet and intimate voice); on the other hand, the attempt to awaken in the man the confidence, the faith and the conversion of his heart.
The cures of the sick Jesus carries through mean indeed much more than merely relieving the pain or recovering the health. They are meant to achieve that those He loves overcome their blindness, their deafness or their stagnant immobility of the spirit. And, ultimately, a true communion of faith and love.
At the same time, we can see how the grateful reaction of the recipients of this divine gift is to proclaim God's mercy: «The more He insisted on this, the more they proclaimed it» (Mk 7:36). They bear witness of the divine gift, they deeply experiment his mercy and are full of a deep and genuine gratitude.
For all of us it is also of crucial importance to know and feel that we are loved by God, the certitude we are the object of his infinite mercy. This is the driving force of generosity and love God is requesting from us. Many are the ways that will carry us to make this discovery. Sometimes, it will be the intense and sudden experience of the miracle and, quite often too, the gradual discovery that all our life is nothing but a miracle of love. In any case, it is necessary we first realize our own indigence, with a true humility and the capacity to listen reflexively to God's voice.