A demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus, and when the demon was driven out the mute man spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “He drives out demons by the prince of demons.”
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There’s nothing that pains the Lord more than human suffering. In addition to today’s Gospel passage, consider a few other moments when Jesus is moved with pity.
His heart broke when he saw the widow at Nain.
This poor mother was on her way to bury her son – something no parent should experience. Perhaps the Lord imagined how his own mother would feel when Calvary came. Overcome with compassion, Jesus touches the boy’s tomb. Instantly, he’s brought back to life.
Then Jesus is moved with pity when he gazes upon a tired and hungry crowd.
Thousands had been following him for days, but they had nothing to eat. So, the Lord multiplies loaves of bread and, the Gospel tells us, “all ate and were filled.”
He’s stirred with compassion again after being confronted by a leper who spent his entire life in isolation. Feeling this man’s loneliness and sense of abandonment, Jesus forgives his sins, heals him, and sets him free.
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We could add thousands of other examples in our world today that pierce our Lord’s heart with pity.
But, as Teresa of Avila once wrote, “Christ has no hands now but yours. No body but yours. Yours are the eyes with which he sees. Yours the hands with which he blesses. Christ has no body now but yours.”
What, then, are we to do?
“Ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for the harvest,” Jesus says in today’s Gospel.
May he send us.
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Image credits: (1) The Millennial Pastor (2) Renovate (3) Germantown Presbyterian Church
While Jesus was speaking, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, “My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus rose and followed him, and so did his disciples. A woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured.” Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, “Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you.” And from that hour the woman was cured.
When Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd who were making a commotion, he said, “Go away! The girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they ridiculed him. When the crowd was put out, he came and took her by the hand, and the little girl arose. And news of this spread throughout all that land.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Matthew describes two cases of healing: a twelve-year-old girl on the brink of death, and a woman who’s been hemorrhaging for the last twelve years.
Together, they represent all of humanity. The girl represents all children who suffer, along with the pain and helplessness of their parents. The older woman represents all who are aging, whose bodies have grown weak under the burden of years.
In each case, if the sick person is to be healed, then the Law must be broken.
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According to Jewish Law, if a person touched a corpse – certainly that of a non-family member – then that person was rendered ritually impure. And yet, when Jesus touches her hand, the child is healed.
Similarly, the older woman was ritually impure because of her flow of blood. Yet, in touching Jesus, she is healed.
The irony is stunning.
In both cases, following the Law leads to death. But breaking it in faith leads to life.
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What type of legalism still exists in the Church today? Are there rules or laws preventing people from making contact with Jesus?
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I wonder how many in our world could be healed if only they could touch the tassel of his cloak.
It seems that is what matters most. Not following a strict set of rules; rather, faith in the Son of God, “who has loved us and given himself for us.”
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Image credits: (1) Skyland United Methodist Church (2) Mandala, Galilee (3) Come to Me, Catholic Herald
Brothers and sisters: That I, Paul, might not become too elated, because of the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
The Word of the Lord.
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Have you ever walked around with a splinter in your foot?
It’s amazing how a tiny shard of glass or a sliver of wood can cause such pain.
I used to get splinters all the time as a boy, especially while running around barefoot on my grandfather’s dock. The second I felt a splinter pierce my toe or heel, I’d freeze in shock, then hop on one foot until I could find a place to sit and, whimpering, prick it out.
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This image of limping, or carrying a painful burden, is what Saint Paul is describing in our second reading. “A thorn in the flesh was given to me,” he says. “An angel of Satan to beat me!”
What sort of “thorn” is Paul referring to? Certainly, not a small shard of glass or wood. It’s something far more significant – and painful.
While Paul does not explain what exactly this “thorn” is, scholars speculate it could’ve been a variety of things.
Perhaps something physical.
Paul might’ve walked with a limp after being beaten, shipwrecked, stoned, imprisoned, and left for dead more than once. By the end of his ministry, his body took a greater toll than many professional athletes!
Others wonder if this “thorn” was something spiritual – a temptation that never relented.
The most likely explanation is the “thorn” of unbelief. In the Old Testament, a “thorn” served as a metaphor for God’s enemies – not only those nations who attacked Israel, but also, and more personally, any Jew who did not have faith.
That is, after all, what Satan wants to destroy: our faith in God.
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Unbelief would’ve been the most painful “thorn” to press into Paul’s side. In fact, on several occasions, he makes reference to “false preachers,” who infiltrated some of the earliest Christian communities, which he founded, preaching a message different from his.
They were like an “angel of Satan,” he says, misleading often fragile believers, twisting Paul’s words, stifling the effectiveness of his ministry.
That’s the deepest pain any minister can experience – watching someone attack your flock, threatening their faith, diminishing God’s kingdom.
“Three times I begged the Lord about this,” Paul says, “that it might leave me. But the Lord said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.’”
That’s a hard pill to swallow.
Not all prayers are answered in the affirmative. Not even the prayers of the great saints like Paul. He prayed – not once, not twice, but three times – to be relieved of this “thorn,” but God did not take it from him.
Nor does God take every “thorn” from us, which is why Paul is writing this second letter to the Corinthians – to teach them, and us, a lesson in faith.
Although God listens to our prayers, sometimes he says to us what he said to Paul, “divine power is made perfect in human weakness.”
This is very heart of Pauline theology. The Christian life is not without suffering; rather, we must learn how to lean into God’s strength while we are weak.
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Is there a “thorn” in your side – a person, an experience, or an illness that doesn’t seem to go away?
Has that thorn led you closer to or further from the Lord?
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Often, we can blame God for these “thorns” – or, at least, for not removing them from us. But Paul invites us into a different perspective. Do not blame God for evil; rather, seek his strength in order to endure it.
“I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,” he says, “in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. Therefore, I am content with insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
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This does not solve the mystery of evil – why we must walk around with a thorn in our side, or a splinter in our foot. But Paul assures us that we shall never be overcome.
May he intercede on our behalf, that like him, we would continue to, “run the race of life to the finish – thorns and all – and keep the faith.”
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Image credits: (1) A-Z Quotes (2) Voice in the City (3) Pinterest
