September 8, 2024, Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)
First Reading: Isaiah 35:4-7 Second Reading: 2: 1 -5 Gospel: Mk.7:31-37
Isaiah in the first reading foretells the messianic touch that will bring wholeness to the deaf and dumb. He urges the people to take courage, because God is coming to save his people.
This is a wonderful message of hope. Isaiah explained that the coming of the Messiah would bring a complete healing to the land and people.
In the gospel, the prophetic message of Isaiah is fulfilled.
Here is a miracle of a deaf and dumb man. Some people brought to Jesus a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and begged the Lord to lay his hand upon him.
The first message here is the acknowledgement of the people who brought the deaf and dumb man to Jesus. They exhibited a wonderful act of charity by bringing the man to Jesus and begging for his healing. They have shown true brotherly love to the sick man.
This is the kind of charity that is needed in our present world. We need to seek the goodness of others especially those disadvantaged people in our society.
How do we do that? Like the men in today’s gospel, we need to pray to God for the wellbeing of others.
Secondly, we need to carry out some concrete actions like going to the hospital, visiting the sick, feeding the poor, visiting those in the prison etc.
When we commit the person into the hands of God, surely, Jesus who is a merciful Lord, like in the story of the gospel today will definitely restore the person to complete goodness.
It’s good to bear in mind that the miracle of healing the deaf and dumb man was done to a gentile who was regarded by the Jews as an unbeliever. What message do we learn from this?
There is no discrimination in Jesus. The second reading of today from the letter of St. James is very clear on class distinction and discrimination. St James makes it clear to us that we should not treat people better because of their worldly possession and thereby treat others badly because they are poor.
As Pope Francis once told Donald Trump, “what we need in the world is to build bridges that bring people together and not walls that separate people”.
As good Christians, we must do away with tribalism, nepotism, racism and religious discrimination. We must follow the example of Jesus who did not discriminate against anyone but came and died for all.
We pray that Almighty God may help us to love everyone and ready to make sacrifices for the good of others.
May Almighty God bless us and protect us from all evil through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Have a lovely and blessed Sunday.
Rev. Fr. Ambrose Onyeka Anene SDB is the parish priest of Church of the Archangels, Gaduwa, Abuja.
