September 12, 2006
“Be Opened!”
Last Sunday’s Gospel about the healing of the deaf man (Mk 7:31-37) is fascinating for several reasons, and has important applications for our lives as Catholics.
First, Jesus shows this man unprecedented intense personal attention. He takes him aside privately away from the crowd. Then, to our shock and amazement, makes astonishing physical contact with the afflicted areas of the man’s body: He inserts His fingers into the man’s ears and touches his tongue with His spittle.
What is even more astounding, though, is the effort Jesus seems to exert to heal the man. He groans, almost strains it appears, and finally cries out, “Ephphata! Be opened!” It almost seems more difficult for Jesus to heal this man’s illness than to cast out demons. How can this be—and what could it mean?
This episode is very similar to the healing of the blind man just ahead in Mk 8:22-26. Jesus also takes him aside, touches his eyes with His spittle, and has to lay hands on the man twice—again implying effort—before the man can see clearly. Scripture scholars tell us that while these two passages recount historical events, they also have a symbolic meaning. The deafness and blindness of these two men represent the stubbornness and resistance that the apostles exhibit in the following chapters to Jesus’ predictions of His impending crucifixion. Hardened human freedom proves to be a greater obstacle for Jesus than enslaved demonic malice.
If we are honest with ourselves, we will recognize within us similar strongholds of stubbornness and fortresses of resistance, deafness and blindness to the Lord. We need that same intense personal contact with Jesus to be healed and set free. Jesus needs to enter through our ears into our minds by means of His Word to unclog us. He needs to touch our tongues and enter into our bodies and hearts by means of the Eucharist to loosen that which is bound. And there is no more privileged place for this to happen than at the Sacred Liturgy, the Mass. There God’s Word becomes alive when it is proclaimed, and we have intense personal and even bodily contact with the Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. There He can enter into the closed doors of our hearts and say: “Be opened!”
Fr. Herald J. Brock, CFR
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