The Barrel - Year B by The Rev. John H. Pavelko |
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THE STRUGGLEShe
had heard about the Rabbi. A man claimed that he was once blind but could
now see after the Rabbi from Galilee had touched his eyes. She had heard
another man tell her that he had been paralyzed until the man named Jesus
commanded him to walk. Someone else showed her his hands and told her that
they had been once been scared by leprosy. A friend told her that the Rabbi
even cured an older woman of a fever and the woman’s son-in-law was now
counted among his followers. Other reports from relatives and friends from
Capernaum were always the same. This man had special powers; maybe just
maybe he could cure her.
He
was not hard to find. She just looked for a large group of people, getting
close to him would prove to be more difficult. There were no ticket marshals
to organize people into an orderly line. Everyone wanted his attention.
People were pushing to get close to him. They were shouting and calling
out his name. She wondered how she could get near enough for him to notice
her. She was not strong enough to fight through the crowd. People were
not going to step aside and allow her to approach.
No
time for me
In
all the commotion of the crowd, she heard the news. Jesus was going to
the house of Jairus the ruler of the synagogue because his daughter was
sick. She was not surprised. Jairus was an important man in the community.
He had prestige and money. Everyone respected him. He looked after the
synagogue. He devoted many hours to the upkeep and maintenance of the building.
With the local Rabbi, he conducted the Sabbath service. Of course, Jesus
would give time to such a man but with this news, her heart was saddened
because she realized that Jesus would not have time for the likes of her.
He would be too busy. The young daughter of a synagogue ruler was more
important than an old woman. Besides, the young girl was dying. Jesus could
not be delayed. Her problem could wait. She had been bleeding for twelve
years and could bleed for another twelve. Her illness did not posse a threat
to her life. No one else was effected by her suffering. Even if it took
her life, who would grief? For a moment, she wondered how she could get
his attention. Then she had an idea. She would not need his attention.
She would not even need to talk to him. All she needed to do was touch
the hem of his garment.
A
superstitious faith
If
it worked, this remedy would be a lot easier than the others she had tried
and a lot less expensive. Once a priest had given her a piece of gum from
Alexandria, a portion of alum, and a crocus. He told her to press them
together and put them in a glass of wine that had a drop of blood. The
mixture looked strange but she drank it. When her bleeding did not stop
another holy man gave her three pints of Persian onions to boil in wine.
When she drank it, he said “Arise from thy flux.” The cocktail tasted sweet
but the bleeding continued. Another holy man then led her to the corner
of two intersecting streets. He asked her several questions. That was nice.
It had been a long time since anyone asked her to tell her story and she
was very lonely. However, while she was talking another man sneaked up
behind her and yelled, “Arise from thy flux.” Startled she jumped and then
realized that the questions were just part of the ceremony to distract
her. The holy man was not really interested in hearing her story. On the
advice of a friend, she feed a white she donkey barley corn. She returned
to the stall later that evening and removed the half-digested kernels of
corn from the droppings of the animal. She carried them in a pouch for
several days but her bleeding continued.[1]
After
trying all these remedies from the Talmud, she restored to the doctors
who charged a fee. She was once a wealthy woman but now she was nearly
penniless. The doctors were expensive but not very effective. They had
an unlimited number of ideas but their ideas only depleted her purse and
the blood continued to flow. Jairus could afford to bring this traveling
Rabbi to his house but she could not. She would have to rely on a simple
touch of his garment.
The
right place, the right time
She
decided that rather than fight the crowd, she would position herself in
his path. She ran ahead and found a spot further up the road, on the way
to Jairus’ house. He had to walk by her. The crowd began to move toward
her, they wanted her to move but she stood her ground with a resolute firmness.
Maybe some of them knew who she was and did not want to touch her, maybe
some were courteous to an old woman, and maybe some sensed her determined
spirit. Whatever their reason the crowd did not push her aside or trample
her. As the Rabbi walked closer to her a crack in the wall of people appeared.
When he got within her reach, she stretched out her hand. For a brief moment,
time stopped for both Jesus and the woman.
In
a vivid technicolor moment which lives in her eternal memory, she felt
healing course through her body, and she was whole! Without a word Jesus’
power completely healed her in the anonymity of the jostling throng. The
same power which he used to make the sea instantly lie flat and to restore
the raving demoniac healed her long-standing illness.[2]
Jesus
realized that power had gone forth and someone had been healed but he was
not going to let that person go unnoticed. He called out, “Who touched
me?” The disciples were stunned. They may have thought the question stupid
but not one of them would say it, instead they responded by stating the
obvious. “You see the crowd pressing
in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’” (Mark 5:31) But Jesus would
not accept their answer. He wanted a name and he wanted a face to go with
the name.
The
woman’s heart was throbbing with joy and fear. Her eyes were tearing. The
Rabbi was asking her to stand before the crowd. She wanted to run and hide.
Why did he want to single her out? Why did he want to embarrass her? He
kept looking around to see who had done it. Finally, their eyes met. His
penetrating gaze was upon her. She could no longer hide so she stepped
forward.
Time
for Everyone
By
his action, our Lord tells us many things about faith and healing. First,
God has time for everyone. The woman was not an intrusion into his schedule.
Jarius may have been chomping at the bit. The ruler of the synagogue may
have thought that he was wasting time while the seconds of his little girl’s
life were ticking away but Jesus had time for every person. For our Lord,
the poor and marginalized were just as important as the rich and powerful.
During this coming week, we will be celebrating the birth of our nation.
One of its founding principles is the equality of all people. I wonder
if we really believe it. Do we really believe that God has time for each
of us, regardless of our political or financial status? Unfortunately,
we see examples of the reverse even within the Church.
A
pastor in Canada once noted that the moderator of the United Church of
Canada was having a profound influence on the rich and powerful and had
even been invited to speak to parliament. When asked why he had been invited
to speak by a reporter the moderator said, “I think people are really looking
for strong, bold leadership that is rooted in the caring, compassionate
values that we do hold and they're not getting. That's why a guy like me
is striking a chord.” However, the Canadian pastor noted that he and several
other people have written letters to that very moderator on behalf of the
little people victimized, and impoverished by the rich and famous. The
moderator has not answered one of those letters. I guess he did not have
time for the very people for whom he was crusading.[3]
Jesus
did not just talk about the poor, the weak, and the needy. He talked to
them. He truly lived out his teaching that the “last shall be first and
“the least, the greatest.” He ignored no one. We are called to do more
than just talk about God’s concern for the hurting. God is calling us to
go and listen to them share their stories. They are not intrusions into
are busy schedule, they are the priority of our ministry as disciples.
Miraculous
Not Superstitious Faith
By
drawing the woman from the crowd, Jesus also helped her understand that
her healing was not a mishmash of magical superstition and charms. Healing
begins with the person of faith not through a ritual or technique. Notice
that Jesus does not even claim to have healed her. Healing is the result
of the action of faith not ceremony. Jesus did not anoint her with oil
or lay his hands on her. At times, these may be meaningful practices but
they were not needed for this healing. Healing does not come in what we
do but in whom we believe. Unless we place our trust in the Great Physician
all of our attempts at curing a disease are nothing more than superstitious
religion.
The
Healing Presence of Community
By
calling the woman from the crowd, Jesus also healed her from the lonely
isolated existence of her past. The book of Leviticus stipulates that if
anyone touches a person with a flow of blood, they are to be considered
unclean for 7 days. They must isolate themselves from contact with others.
They cannot eat at the same table or sit in the same chairs. They must
live alone until the time of purification was completed. While based in
superstition these laws protected the Jews from certain communicable diseases
but they had a devastating impact on people.
In
a society that specialized in hospitality, the sick and the diseased were
ostracized. They were excluded from the social life of the community. Separated
from their friends and family they suffered a terrible state of loneliness.
Imagine eating alone for twelve years or never having a hug from a loved
one. No one was there for this woman to hold her hand when she cried or
give her a soft touch on the shoulder to remind her that she was not alone.
By
bringing her before the crowd, Jesus not only told her but also announced
to all of her friends and family that she had been cured. She was healed.
She was available for dinner invitations. They could now hug her and rejoice
together.
Your
Story
Can
this story be your story? From what I can tell there is a lot of bleeding
in people I met every day. Life is ebbing away every day. We feel alone.
We do not think that anyone has time for us. We do not want to distract
people from the more important things of their life. We would like a magic
cure to our problems. Maybe if we just wave our Bible over our heads, the
problems will vanish, our children will be more obedient, our job will
be more rewarding or our life will have more meaning. How many more remedies
will we try before we are willing to place our faith and trust in the Rabbi
from Nazareth?
[1]
William L. Lane, The Gospel of Mark, NICNT, Gordon D. Fee ed., (Grand
Rapids MI: William B. Eerdmans, 1974), 190.
[2]
R. Kent Hughes, Mark: Jesus Servant and Savior, Volume I, Preaching
the Word Series, (Weschester IL, Crossway Books, 1989), 128.
[3]
Barry J. Robinson, “Keeping the faith in Babylon,” Online: http://www.selkirk-tangiers.com/~spirit/sermons/b-or13-keeping.html.
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