Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s readings remind me of a question one of my children asked me last year while sick with an awful stomach virus. The sickness shortened our visit with grandparents and thwarted our plans to see my sister and her family for fear of spreading it to them while we were traveling. Thankfully it only lasted about 24 hours, but it was a rough 24 hours for all three of our kids who got it (and not easy on the adults caring for them!). As I recall it, the question was, “Why do we have to get sick… Why does God let us get sick?” Kind of a big question and not one that I’m sure I have the right theological explanation for. But what I was inspired to tell her, and which seemed to make sense to her as I was sitting with her through the discomfort, was that I think God allows sickness because it reminds us of our need for God and for each other. It keeps us aware of our vulnerability as humans and the importance of our dependence on God. We are not invincible or superhuman, and we’re not meant to be.
In the first reading (1 Samuel 4:1-11), the Israelites are defeated by the Philistines and the Ark of God is captured. This was a big deal. The elders of Israel ask the question, “Why has the Lord permitted us to be defeated…?” Now, the underlying message of this story is believed to have been that because of the crimes of Eli’s sons, Israel was no longer worthy of God’s presence in the Ark, but the elders are wondering where God is in this situation in which thousands of their soldiers were killed. Perhaps they feel abandoned by God. The psalm echoes these feelings and questions of God, “Why do you hide your face, forgetting our woe and our oppression?” (Psalm 44: 25) (Later in the first book of Samuel the ark is returned to the Israelites and Samuel addresses the whole house of Israel to turn to the Lord, “fix your hearts on the Lord and serve him alone”, and they eventually defeat the Philistines.)
Today’s gospel reading (Mark 1: 40-45) further emphasizes our vulnerability as human beings and need for God in Jesus in the story of the cleansing of a leper. In this case, the leper kneels before Jesus and begs him to cleanse him, to heal him. Once the word spreads of Jesus healing this man, Jesus can no longer enter a town openly, so he remains outside of town in deserted places, but “people kept coming to him from everywhere.” Many people were in need of healing and sought Jesus, like the leper.
Isn’t it true that times of sickness, vulnerability, and fear in our lives may leave us questioning where God is, but draw us closer to God and lead us to seek out Jesus’ healing touch? Perhaps God uses our physical suffering, sickness and vulnerability to get our attention and lead us to seek the closeness to God and one another that we really need. As humans, don’t we tend to put greater emphasis on our physical health and well being than on our spiritual well being? As I said to my daughter, I think God uses our vulnerability as human beings to remind us of our need for God and for each other.
When it seems that God is far from us in our weakness and suffering, let us remember that God’s only son, Jesus, also felt abandoned while dying on the cross. Ours is a God that knows real suffering as a human. He also knows the joy of the resurrection, and offers to share that joy with us. Let us place our hope in Him and share it compassionately with the people in our lives.
- Eileen Miller