As Many As Touched It Were Healed

February 6, 2011

Memorial of Saint Paul Miki and Companions, Martyrs

When the priests left the holy place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD so that the priests could no longer minister because of the cloud, since the LORD's glory had filled the temple of the LORD. Then Solomon said, "The LORD intends to dwell in the dark cloud; I have truly built you a princely house, a dwelling where you may abide forever." 1 Kings 8:10-13

As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him. They scurried about the surrounding country and began to bring in the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed. Mark 6:54-56

Piety

Father, help me find you today in the people I meet. Wake me up to your presence so that I may see and know your goodness and pass it on to others I encounter. Amen.

Study

What is the dark cloud? From the notes to the New American Bible, we learn that the “dark cloud” in which the Lord intends to dwell refers not only to the cloud that filled the Temple in today’s first reading, but also to the “darkness of the windowless holy of holies and to the mystery of the God enthroned invisibly upon the cherubim as well.”

The Notes go on to explain: “Solomon calls the Temple he offers God a firm base, using terminology similar to that used for God’s firm establishment of Solomon’s own kingdom. The Temple can be understood both as a place where God resides and as the earthly foundation of God’s heavenly throne. The double meaning allows an understanding of the divine presence as both transcendent and graciously immanent.” From this throne, God will not only reign over the Temple, but God also will hear the prayers offered up to Him from those who believe.

With Jesus’ public ministry, the encounter with the Lord changes. Jesus takes the encounter with God from the temple into the hills of Galilee, to the mats in the marketplace and to the towns in the countryside. No long do people only have to turn to the Lord in the darkness of the Temple or in Jerusalem. They can follow him around in the light of day. He is not hiding from the Roman authorities or the Pharisees. Even when Jesus and his disciples cross to the other side of the lake, people are already there on the other side seeking healing, wholeness and holiness.

Action

Our encounter with the Lord today is not to seek out an individual man walking around ancient Palestine. The Lord is everywhere. In this unseasonably temperate winter, the Lord will touch us today with the sunshine, with the riches upon which we have, and through the people we meet.

Be aware of your response to this touch today. The tassel is as close as those emerging crocus bulbs and the buds of spring waiting to break out from their winter sleep.

How will you extend that touch to others you encounter today?