Reflection - Twenty Third Sunday of Ordinary Time

Photo: unsplash.com/dannynee

The gospel today is focused on a deaf man who also has a tongue impediment. The context in the gospel, like in anyone’s life is significant. We learn the deeper implications from understanding the context in Mark’s gospel and apply it to our own.

Jesus has travelled into Gentile territory, pagan territory, where people do not belong to the Jewish faith, do not consider themselves part of the chosen people of God as the Jews did. He has previously clashed with the Pharisees and scribes who travelled down from Jerusalem to confront him in Capernaum.

They have a blazing argument and he accuses them of hypocrisy, of making trivial issues more important than true worship of God. They do not hear what he is saying; they have no disposition to hear what he is saying about the kingdom and his role in proclaiming it.

We find him in the Gentile territory where some people, we presume pagans, bring a deaf man to him and ask him to heal the deaf man. What is it that these people possess that the Pharisees did not? Perhaps their lack of religion or knowledge of the Jewish law made their decision easier to take in bringing him to Jesus. We get the impression that they think Jesus is a miracle worker because there were people with that gift in the country and Jesus shows he has that ability.

It was one of the issues that attracted crowds; his popularity was an issue for the Pharisees.

He touched the deaf man’s ears and put spittle from his mouth into the deaf man’s mouth and a miracle takes place. Suddenly he can hear. But the miracle is more than hearing, he can speak. He does not need to learn how to talk, he is fully healed.

Once again the outsiders seem to have more openness to Jesus, almost more faith than those chosen people who almost seem to be restricted in what they see and understand from their own religion. At least the Pharisees and scribes who know it the best. This is so ironic.

What follows seems so natural. However Jesus did it, the people are excited and tell everyone about the miracle and the miracle man. Commentators tell us that Jesus wanted them to be silent lest he be seen as a miracle worker and not the bringer of God’s good news.

But who would not let everyone know that there was a man who was deaf, who was excluded from so much human activity by being deaf who could now take his place fully in society.

And so today, the Church inspired by the gospel continues the healing work initiated by Jesus, not only in the sacraments, especially the sacrament of the sick but through medical facilities. Many people with disabilities have been left on the margins of society because of their disabilities but we are changing. The Paralympics shows how we have progressed. Hopefully, our churches welcome the disabled to be a part of the community.

Columban Fr Gary Walker is currently living at the Columban house in Sandgate, Brisbane.