The text from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today suggest contemplation about the Wisdom we show in the decisions we make in our relationship with God and others.
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| Wisdom in working with others |
The passage from Genesis outlines the change in the understanding of Adam and Eve as a consequence of deciding to choose what God had denied to them.
* [3:1] Cunning: there is a play on the words for “naked” (2:25) and “cunning/wise” (Heb. ‘arum). The couple seek to be “wise” but end up knowing that they are “naked.”1
In the Gospel from Mark Jesus takes care to respect privacy in The Healing of a Deaf Man.
* [7:36] The more they proclaimed it: the same verb proclaim attributed here to the crowd in relation to the miracles of Jesus is elsewhere used in Mark for the preaching of the gospel on the part of Jesus, of his disciples, and of the Christian community (Mk 1:14; 13:10; 14:9). Implied in the action of the crowd is a recognition of the salvific mission of Jesus; see note on Mt 11:5–6.2
Carol Zuegner suggests that Jesus wanted to respect the dignity of the deaf and mute man by taking him aside to heal him. Jesus wanted people to listen to him and to hear his message of love and caring. Sometimes that must have gotten lost in the glow of a deaf and mute man being able to hear and speak. Sometimes we as humans need more to believe. Jesus understood that then and now.
In my own life, I have to focus on listening to the word of God and living it, not expecting God to produce a sideshow for me to believe. How am I showing and living my love for God and my neighbor every day? How can I respect the dignity of everyone I encounter? I, too, often need my ears opened to hear what God is saying to me in the Gospels, in prayer. I need my inner ears opened to listen to my best self, to do the right thing with my family, my colleagues, my friends. I can feel when I start to close off that best self and do the easy thing. I don’t listen when that inner voice is cringing when I am short or rude or dismissive of those I should be attentive to. When I think “Oh, that doesn’t really matter.” It does matter.3
Don Schwager quotes “The touch of the Lord,” by Ephrem the Syrian (306-373 AD).
"That power which may not be handled came down and clothed itself in members that may be touched, that the desperate may draw near to him, that in touching his humanity they may discern his divinity. For that speechless man the Lord healed with the fingers of his body. He put his fingers into the man's ears and touched his tongue. At that moment with fingers that may be touched, he touched the Godhead that may not be touched. Immediately this loosed the string of his tongue (Mark 7:32-37), and opened the clogged doors of his ears. For the very architect of the body itself and artificer of all flesh had come personally to him, and with his gentle voice tenderly opened up his obstructed ears. Then his mouth which had been so closed up that it could not give birth to a word, gave birth to praise him who made its barrenness fruitful. The One who immediately had given to Adam speech without teaching, gave speech to him so that he could speak easily a language that is learned only with difficulty (Genesis 1:27-28). (excerpt from HOMILY ON OUR LORD 10.3)4
The Word Among Us Meditation on Mark 7:31-37 asks don’t you think the man from (Mark 5:19) had a part to play in the people’s openness? His words must have softened their hearts and piqued their interest in Jesus. Then the seeds he planted blossomed when these people encountered the Lord for themselves.
In the same way, you can sow seeds of faith—by your kindness, by showing mercy to someone who has wronged you, by sharing about what God has done in your own life. Those seeds have great potential to play a part in someone’s openness to the Lord. God really can use your witness to soften hearts and to stir up interest.
Of course, even after you’ve planted seeds of faith, you don’t always see people taking steps toward the Lord. Still, you can trust that God is working, even if you can’t detect any evidence of it. Just as the man from (Mark 5:19) probably never knew that Jesus was going to visit the Decapolis again, we never know when Jesus will “visit” the people with whom we’ve shared our faith. So let’s keep planting those seeds—and leave it to the Lord to make them bloom someday!5
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, asks do you recognize that any God worthy of the name must transcend creeds and denominations, time and place, nations and ethnicities, and all the vagaries of gender and sexuality, extending to the limits of all we can see, suffer, and enjoy? All of our human differences are “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
You are a child of God, and always will be, even when you don’t believe it.
This is why I can see Christ in my dog, the sky, and all creatures, and it’s why you, whoever you are, can experience God’s unadulterated care for you in your garden or kitchen. You can find Christ’s presence in your beloved partner or friend, an ordinary beetle, a fish in the deepest sea that no human will ever observe, and even in those who do not like you and those who are not like you.6
The Wisdom of Christ is our guide to decisions we make for our life and ministry.
References
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(n.d.). Genesis chapter 3 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved February 15, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/Genesis/3:1
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(n.d.). Mark chapter 7 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved February 15, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/mark/7:31
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(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections .... Retrieved February 15, 2019, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
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(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved February 15, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
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(2019, February 53). 5th Week in Ordinary Time - Mass Readings and Catholic Daily .... Retrieved February 15, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/02/15
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(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archives — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved February 15, 2019, from https://cac.org/category/daily-meditations/2019/02/
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