Message of Abbot Paul - Wednesday 15th February 2023
Abbot Paul • February 14, 2023
Yesterday was a wonderful, but exhausting day, as Toby and I went home to my mother’s to celebrate her 96th birthday. We had a really good day together, although I always feel guilty about the amount of work we cause by our arrival and stay. My mother is still hyper-independent and not the sort of woman who allows others to do things for her, difficult when you would like to give a helping hand. The walk on the beach with Toby and an old school friend was like stepping into Paradise for an hour or more. You can feel the sea air doing you good.
Our Gospel today from Mark, (Mk 8: 22-26), sees Jesus healing a blind man at Bethsaida, a name that means either house of the hunter or house of the fisherman. It was the hometown of Andrew, Peter and Philip. Scholars disagree as to where exactly to was, probably on the eastern side of Lake Galilee somewhere in the Bethsaida Valley. “Jesus and his disciples came to Bethsaida, and some people brought to him a blind man whom they begged him to touch. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. Then putting spittle on his eyes and laying his hands on him, he asked, ‘Can you see anything?’ The man, who was beginning to see, replied, ‘I can see people; they look like trees to me, but they are walking about.’ Then he laid his hands on the man’s eyes again and he saw clearly; he was cured, and he could see everything plainly and distinctly. And Jesus sent him home, saying, ‘Do not even go into the village.’”
As often happens, the sick person is brought to Jesus by others and we are not told if they are friends or family. They know that Jesus’ touch is miraculous, but Jesus does nothing there and then. Rather, he leads the man out of the village, taking him by the hand. He lays hands on him and then anoints his eyes with spittle. Jesus brings about a new creation through the life-giving power of his touch and his saliva. To begin with the healing is partial, for the man recognises people looking like trees. Perhaps, he was not blind from birth, but had seen before. A second laying on of hands assures the healing and restoration of sight. However, Jesus sends him home and does not want him going back into the town, spreading the news of his healing. Jesus does not seek publicity, but simply the healing, forgiveness and salvation of sinners.
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