9 September 2018
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
In Gospel we hear how Jesus continues to journey through the Gentile territory with a story of the healing of a deaf mute. We hear in the story that Jesus asks the crowd to stay silence about the miracle that he performs. But the more Jesus commands silence, the more the people speak out. Because of human ignorance, they might not see the reason why Jesus asks them to be quiet in the first place. The basic story of the healing of the deaf mute is that for those who were to be instructed in the divine teaching, they had first to receive physical benefits, and so after they had the experience of the miracles, they would have no doubt about Jesus’ teaching. Here Jesus uses a two-step strategy, first he heals the bodies and then he moves to cure the mind and souls.
Jesus does not want them to speak out because they do not really know who Jesus is. Even the disciples merely see Jesus as a powerful Son of God. But Jesus wants them to go deeper to see what kind of Son of God he is. St. Thomas Aquinas believes that Jesus is the Son of God who will direct us toward our ultimate happiness, that is, the beatific vision. For Jesus, it is impossible for happiness to consist in wealth, honor, glory, power, bodily good, and, pleasure. Whoever longs to attain ultimate happiness must see the steps that lead to it. Eternal happiness can only be attained by those who are have experienced inward healing instead of outward healings.
In your prayers today, perhaps you can reflect on your longing to be touched by Jesus, either for physical or spiritual healing. Perhaps you need to pray for the increase of faith in Jesus’s power to heal you.