What we see and hear

The episode from the Gospel of Mark in the Roman Catholic Lectionary today concludes with "we have never seen anything like this" (Mark 2:12). Fr Larry Gillick reflects on this passage by considering the statement of the CS Lewis character in The Magician’s Nephew, (one of the Chronicles of Narnia), which is "For what you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing and also depends on what sort of person you are". The witnesses to the healing of the paralytic saw and heard a different event. Friar Jude Winkler notes that even though we might "see" forgiveness of sins as easier than healing the paralysis, the Scribes and some who consider their sinfulness to be to great or too inconsequential to God for Divine intervention may "hear" different messages than the invitation to rebirth through forgiveness. This invitation to rebirth is extended to the exiles in Babylon as the prophet declares that God is standing in the position where He sees the transgressions of the people and hears their doubts in Babylon, yet chooses to blot out their sins and not remember. The account we give of an accident we witness depends on where we stand and the bias we may have in our mind for "drivers who turn left on this street". We look out at the people of God and , like Jesus, see the faith which is healing their lives and the lives of those with whom they have contact or we see the people who threaten our authority and control with "new" understanding. We may, like Paul, as in the comment from Friar Jude,  deflect our personal upset with a situation by withdrawing to a position that gives us a new perspective and we may choose to send a letter or email rather than invite a face to face confrontation. Where are we standing?