Jacob
then made this vow: “If God remains with me, to protect me on this journey I am
making and to give me enough bread to eat and clothing to wear, and I come back
safe to my father’s house, the LORD shall be my God. This stone that I have set
up as a memorial stone shall be God’s abode.” Genesis
28:20-22A
A
woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the
tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I
shall be cured.” Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, “Courage, daughter!
Your faith has saved you.” And from that hour the woman was cured. Matthew 9:20-22
Piety
Father,
remain with me, to protect me on this journey I am making today. Brother Jesus, give me enough to support my
daily needs. Holy Spirit, in
thanksgiving, guide me back to the House of the Lord and I shall renew my sacramental
vows so that the Lord may count on me and I will always count on the Lord.
Study
Jacob was not having a very good time amongst
his own family. His brother schemed
against him and took his blessing and place of honor in his father’s house. Jacob
was forced to go into exile in a foreign land. On the way, he stopped off to
get a night’s sleep before continuing on…that is when he experienced his dream-vision
of the stairway to heaven.
Jesus also was not having a very good time
amongst his own people. Despite his skilled preaching, curing the sick, and
making the lame walk, the Jews showed little faith. However, in the anonymous
two people he encountered in today’s gospel, the Roman official and the women hemorrhaging,
he encountered faith and rewarded it justly.
After so many scripture stories in recent
weeks where naming was a significant aspect of revealing the meaning behind the
events, naming once again is important – or indeed the lack of names. The official, his daughter and the woman are
not named. However, what sets them apart
from all the people in Nazareth whom Jesus knows is the faith upon which they
act.
In the first reading, we eventually learn
that the places are named something significant. However, at first, Jacob came upon a certain
unnamed place. He figured that it would
be as good a place as any to set up camp overnight. However, the certain place turned out to be
Bethel, which was a sacred site as far back as the time of Abraham. (“From there [Abram] moved
on to the hill country east of Bethel, pitching his tent with Bethel to the
west and Ai to the east. He built an altar there to the LORD and invoked
the LORD by name.” Genesis 12:8)
It just so happens that “Bethel” means house
of God. Thus, Jacob did not choose some random place. His feet were led by the Holy Spirit to holy
ground from which his dream vision emerged. The notes in the New American Bible
explain: “Jacob’s unawareness of the holiness of the place underscores the
graciousness of the gift.”
The anonymity of the official, the daughter
and the woman also underscore the graciousness of the gift of healing that
Jesus presented to them based upon their faith.
Action
What sets you apart?
Recently, on a trip out of town, we got a
ride to a local Catholic church on Sunday morning. The driver commented that she was raised in
Catholic schools (implying that she did not go to church now). However, she was wise enough to comment about
how many people came to her city on a vacation but did not go to church on
Sunday – noting that Satan never takes a holiday.
Where will you go to Church while
travelling? What certain place is there
where you can rest your weary head beside peaceful waters?
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