7-Dec-15

Gospel LK 5:17-26
One day as Jesus was teaching,
Pharisees and teachers of the law,
who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem,
were sitting there,
and the power of the Lord was with him for healing.
And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed;
they were trying to bring him in and set him in his presence.
But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd,
they went up on the roof
and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles
into the middle in front of Jesus.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said,
“As for you, your sins are forgiven.”
Then the scribes and Pharisees began to ask themselves,
“Who is this who speaks blasphemies?
Who but God alone can forgive sins?”
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them in reply,
“What are you thinking in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’
or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–
he said to the one who was paralyzed,
“I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.”
He stood up immediately before them,
picked up what he had been lying on,
and went home, glorifying God.
Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God,
and, struck with awe, they said,
“We have seen incredible things today.”
Reflection:
"And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed."
In today's gospel,"some men," based on their belief in our Lord's ability to heal, compassionately brought a crippled man to Jesus on a stretcher.
Seeing the faith of the men who lowered their crippled friend through the roof, Jesus said to them, "As for you, your sins are forgiven."
The scribes and Pharisees questioned Jesus' authority to forgive sins. Only then did he say to the crippled man, "I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.”
There are at least eight instances in the New Testament when a miracle occurred as a result of someone pleading for the healing of another person.
Clearly, the combination of our faith and our compassion for others deeply touches the heart of Jesus.
The faith and compassion of the thousands of individuals who make up the My Brother's Keeper family continues to make it possible for Christ to bring about healing in the lives of those whom we serve.
It is when our hearts are torn by the suffering of others that the Spirit of God is most alive and active on earth and thousands of people are renewed with the Love and Hope of Jesus Christ.
Then in awe we too can say, “We have seen incredible things today.”

“When I experience the joy of giving to my children, help me to remember the agony of those who must watch their children go without." ― My Brother's Keeper Prayer