Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Through the course of my day I often encounter people who are going through various struggles. For some it may be an illness, for others a death of a family or friend, and for others a strained relationship or divorce. My response to these friends is often “I will pray for you.” So what exactly does that mean? I think that today’s gospel gives a beautiful illustration of what it means to pray for another person. Similar to the men in today’s gospel, I think that when we pray for someone, we bring that person and place them at the feet of Christ. It is in His presence that the person who is suffering can be blessed with Christ’s grace, mercy and healing.
In the gospel reading Jesus is teaching a large group of people. A group of men were attempting to bring a man who was paralyzed to Jesus to “set him in his presence.” Their only recourse was lowering him through a hole in the roof to set him in front of Jesus. When Jesus sees the great faith of the men carrying the paralytic, He offers forgiveness of sins. Although it does not specifically state who Jesus is bestowing His mercy and forgiveness, (“As for you, your sins are forgiven.”) it seems that the invalid and those carrying him were all recipients of God’s mercy. Jesus reveals that the healing of our relationship with God (forgiveness of sins) is the first and foremost mercy that He shares. Because of the doubts of the Pharisees, Jesus physically heals the paralytic so that they “may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” Those who come to the feet of Jesus in faith are shown the mercy of God as He welcomes them back to God’s loving embrace. When a person is in right relationship with God, then God’s grace can continue to heal, comfort, strengthen and counsel all the needs that have been brought to His feet.
Praying for others is one of the spiritual works of mercy. Recently I have started a new practice which helps make this more practical for me. Every time I offer to pray for someone, I write down the request on a small piece of paper and place it in a bowl. When I pray, I lift up all the petitions that are in my “prayer bowl.” On a regular basis, I go through the many petitions, and I am reminded of all those that I continue to lift up in my prayers. I also have an opportunity to see the many ways that God has responded to the requests that I have brought to Him. By going to Him with these prayer requests I find that I am also blessed, since I am given the ability to see the Hand of God in the lives of so many people. Praying for others involves total trust and belief in God’s goodness and love. If I recognize that God is the one in control, and I have faith that His mercy endures always, then I know that I can continue to bring all things to Him and place them at His feet. My “prayer bowl” is one way that I can in a tangible way bring others to Christ’s mercy.
"Heavenly Father, thank you for Jesus who is Your face of mercy for us. Through your Spirit, allow us to bring others to Jesus, so we can bring His forgiveness and healing to the world. May our faith in You bring You praise and glory. We pray this through Christ, our LORD. Amen."
- Marylynn Herchline