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Posts Tagged ‘healing’
Download 7th Sunday Yr B
Reflection Questions
- God makes a promise through Isaiah to do ‘something new’. God will lead them out of captivity in Babylon and back ‘home’ to their promised land. A path will be clear, rivers for water in times of thirst will be provided. Are you able to ‘perceive’ God helping you with a ‘path’ and ‘water’ today? How?
- God reminds them of sin, lack of praise, lack of prayer, crimes. But joyfully lets them know these have been ‘wiped away’. Sin and the past is not being ‘remembered’. Do you play over in your head and heart past ‘sins’? Do you live more in ‘sin’ than ‘forgiveness’? What conversation would you like to have with God….. with a priest in the sacrament of reconciliation?
- St Paul has had difficulties with the community at Corinth. He promised he would visit them and then instead sent Titus (hoping he may have more success!) People accused Paul of being ‘yes’ and ‘no’. He says one thing but does another. Has this criticism been made of you? Do you keep promises made by your words and fulfill them with action? Paul explains himself and points to Jesus as being utterly faithful and the complete ‘Yes’ of all God’s promises.
- Mark chapter 2 begins a series of conflicts with religious authorities. Scribes (religious lawyers) who contained God – taught what God was like and laws that were to be kept – are upset that Jesus makes a claim to ‘act in the name and with the power of God’. They charge him with blasphemy – pretending to be God! How do you understand Jesus’ words and power to heal and forgive? Is Jesus the predicted ‘Son of Man’ (Book of Daniel)? Is he truly who he claims to be?
- The loyalty of the friends of the paralysed man attracts Jesus’ attention. Imagine going to the extreme lengths of ripping open a roof so that your friend could be restored to life. Do you and your friends know someone in need of help. What would opening up the roof for them involve? Will you do it?
- The Gospel today reveals two typical responses to Jesus (christians, Church): critical or captivated. A theological question of ‘who’ Jesus is refuses to be open to suprise. An acceptance of what he does leads to astonishment. Who is this person Jesus and where does he get his power from are questions beneath the surface of this gospel story. We are drawn personally into this question. What is your response?
- As Jesus cures and heals so many people in the gospel of Mark, we can feel left out and unable to ‘follow’ him in his words and deeds of power. It is significant to realise there are physical (cures) and social (healing) elements. We are not always able to ‘cure’ but we can frequently enable healing – the reintegration of a person back into families, society, worship. Like the helpers today, how could you ‘heal’?
- What is one action that you will do to ‘livetheword’ this week?
Download 6th Sunday Yr B
Reflection Questions
- The Book of Leviticus is a set of legal instructions (code) for Priests to ensure proper worship. Priests had the job of judging if someone was suffering, among many other things, from a skin condition ‘blotch’ – leprosy – which would make them ‘contagious’ and therefore ‘unclean’. In close living conditions this would have ensured disease did not spread. Unfortunately, when labelled ‘unclean’ a person had to leave family, friends, was excluded from society and worship in the Temple. It was psychologically and physically ‘death by exclusion’. Imagine having to shout to everyone that you were ‘unclean’! Who do you label as ‘unclean’? Who is ‘living outside the Church camp’ feeling unable to be with the community as they feel and perceive to be judged ‘unclean’? What could you do?
- Paul seeks to address another problem in the town of Corinth. Some christians were upset that fellow christians were buying food from the local butcher that had been sacrificed in pagan temples. Some were firm in their belief that there was no other gods so it was irrelevant. Others were afraid. Paul encourages an approach of ‘avoid giving offence’ and ‘try to please everyone’. Is there anything in your life which is offending another? How could you more closely imitate Christ?
- Healing is costly for the Leper and the Healer (Jesus). The Leper has put himself in danger being in the crowd. They could have been violent, outraged that his closeness to them made them ‘ritually unclean’ and possibly contaminating them with his skin disease. Is there something in your life causing you great sadness. Can you find the willingness to suffer the cost of seeking healing? What obstacles do you need to break through?
- Jesus is full of emotion toward the Leper. ‘Moved with pity’ does not accurately translate the original Greek. It is literally ‘having ones intestines in an uproar!’ Some translations write ‘moved with anger’. Jesus is angry at the sad state of the Leper, the exclusion, the pain. God’s heart is wrenched with compassion and pain. If Jesus heals he knows this will further increase his popularity and possibly misinterpret him as only a ‘wonder worker’. He heals him but commands him to be quiet. He insists he go to get a certificate of cleanliness from the Temple. He wants him to be included back into society and made ‘whole’ again. Are your intestines in an uproar about injustice, people caught in the bondage of sin, unjust exclusion? If not, why not.
- Jesus’ popularity increases to such an extent that he is now forced into ‘deserted places’, unable to enter a town openly. His life has now taken on the lived experience of those who were labelled ‘unclean’. Have you experienced the ‘cost’ of helping someone and living with the consequences of upsetting community and religious boundaries? Has it made you more or less willing to ‘heal’ again? What happened…
- What is one action that you will do to ‘livetheword’ this week?
Download 4th Sunday Yr B
Reflection Questions
- The Book of Deuteronomy is a book of long sermons and reflections. It is regarded as the second (deutero) law, an insightful reflection on the teachings of Moses. Although the great prophet, Moses did not lead God’s people into the promised land. Yet the community realised how necessary it was to have someone completely ‘in tune’ with God who could correct and guide them. Are you frightened to ‘hear the voice of God’? Do you resist being ‘still’? Listening to the deepest voice of God within your spirit? Is there a ‘prophet’ that God has placed in your life and you know it is important to ‘listen to the words of their mouth’?
- A true prophet speaks what God has spoken. It is not made up wisdom. Have you ‘presumed to speak in my name’? Consider praying to God for particular wisdom and insight for people whom you guide with your words and witness. Do any images or words or ideas come to mind? Write them down and continue to ask God for guidance.
- St Paul’s writings teach of equality of men and women in marriage. Putting the letter to the Corinthians in context, Paul’s early writings presume Jesus’ return is to happen so soon, it is best to let nothing distract us from being ready. What makes you anxious? Distracted from God?
- The Gospel of Mark immediately shows Jesus overcoming the forces of evil. Check out a typical day of Jesus in Mark chapters 1-3! The battle between Good and Evil is striking. Unclean spirits are taunted and afraid and surprisingly acknowledge the identity of Jesus before anyone else. Jesus is experienced differently from the scribes who taught legal rules. Jesus in his words and action brought healing and liberation. Are you a person of ‘word’ and ‘action’? Is your word filled with commitment to bring about what you have said?
- Exorcisms done by Jesus symbolise and reveal the ultimate struggle between good and evil that Jesus is involved with. To bring the ‘Kingdom of God’ into reality involves ‘fighting against evil’. Is there anything that you are doing in your life that Jesus would not do? If Jesus were to be in your home, flat, workplace, what would he resist? Fight? Seek to change?
- Jesus is shown to be the true prophet, fulfilling the prophecy of Moses (first reading) whose word is the Word of God. Yet be breaks the ‘sabbath’ law by ‘working a healing’. He does this in the synagogue, in front of scribes (Church leaders who teach the ‘law’). He creates a disturbance with the man convulsing and shaking in front of a crowd as he is released from domination by an evil spirit. Jesus as a prophet makes people uncomfortable. ‘Prophets make lovely additions to the Bible, but you certainly don’t want one in your neighborhood. No Sir! Prophets wreak havoc on the status quo…’ Can you identify anyone who is prophetic? Whose presence brings God and causes havoc in the re-establishment of God’s order? What prophetic word or act could you do this week?
- What is one action that you will do to ‘livetheword’ this week?
Download 28th Sunday Yr C
Reflection Question 4: Gospel stories are like ‘ice-bergs’. 90% of the story is beneath the surface. Underneath the story of the lepers are further stories of exclusion, hurt, isolation. The Samaritan figure is like Naaman in the first reading, a hated foreigner. Past events had caused Samaritans not to acknowledge Jerusalem and the Temple as the place of true worship. Healing from leprosy required a ‘certificate of health’ by the Priest and only when this was given would a ‘leper’ be accepted back into the community. The 10 lepers are obviously so keen to see the priest that they lose sight of who did the healing – Jesus. Have you had some ‘high’ moments in life and forgot to return and ‘give thanks’ to God. Write or share or pray a ‘thank-you’ list to God noticing things in your life you do not normally say ‘thanks’ to God for.
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