HEALING

HEALINGS – 13th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B

            Whenever we receive more life mentally, emotionally and spiritually, we are healed or we become healthy or healthier. Often sickness is the absence of life, or the presence of foreign life, such as a virus. Eating is a healing experience. If we don’t eat, we quickly become weak and subject to sickness. Sleep is a healing experience. Without sleep we can become unhealthy. Having and being with friends is a healing experience. Without friends or loving people, we can become weak or sick emotionally. Loneliness can lead to sickness.

            Healing comes when life or a life giving force passes from one person to another, or from something in nature such as from foods, or directly from the Holy Spirit. We are constantly involved in receiving and giving healing. Parents heal their children through holding the child who may be injured, scared, fearful, afraid, sick or undergoing some threatening experience. Husbands and wives heal each other.

            God’s words heal. Listening heals. Touching heals. Being present heals. Many become sick from bad or harmful or false words or bad or sinful relationships. Many become sick or weak or open to disease from not having the right people in their lives, or by being cut off from whatever recreates, restores, and gives them life. Sin, seeking life in bad ways, makes people sick, weak and diseased. Sickness and weakness and decline in life comes with the aging process, which is normal, and part of our inheritance as part of the human race under the penalty of sin and death.

            Everyone is acquainted with light, less serious sicknesses, diseases, and weaknesses in ourselves and others. All are familiar with healing on these levels as well. We can be healed and have more life by just being with people. We are so familiar with some forms of healing that we are hardly aware of them. When someone says something that feeds or heals us emotionally, we don’t ordinarily say we are healed. We just know we feel better or have more life. Some people heal us by just being present. Some give energy and life by kind words, prayer, a touch, a good thought, a loving attitude and good actions.

            Hostile environments and people can make people sick in different ways physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Many suffer sicknesses and diseases from these, and are hardly aware of the sources. Everyone has more experiences with sicknesses and healing than we might have imagined. All need to strive to be a healing and life giving person, just as we need healing and life giving people in our life to be healthy.

            Jesus came to give life, which includes healing. Our faith, our relationship to Jesus Christ is the greatest source of health, healing, and life. The Lord wants us to be healthy. “God did not make death, nor does He rejoice in the destruction of the living.” United to Jesus in prayer, in His Spirit, in His words, and receiving the life giving food and drink of His Body and Blood in Holy Communion keeps us spiritually healthy. Jairus trusted in Jesus’ healing power. He knew that if Jesus just laid hands on his daughter she would be healed. Jesus responded to his faith and healed his daughter.

            The woman who suffered hemorrhages for twelve years knew if she just touched Jesus’ clothing she would be healed. “If I but touch His clothes I shall be healed.” When she did so, she experienced healing. “Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.”

            The Holy Spirit unites us to Jesus and therefore to His life healing power. His healing power flows through His Body, the Church. While all the members, who are living His life and teachings are healers, different members are special instruments of His healing power. The Lord acts in all the saving sacraments to heal and bring His life. Any contact with the Risen Lord by the Holy Spirit is a healing and life giving experience. Just as we are not always aware or conscious of how people heal and give us life, so we are not always aware of the Lord’s saving action in our life.

             People who love us give us life and prevent sicknesses. Being in union with the Lord prevents sickness, and brings life and healing!