He reached out his hand and touched the man. – Mark 1:41

        The air was gloomy. From time to time, a whimper would be heard. One by one, we went to his bedside, touched his head, his hands, his cheeks — until it was time for him to go.

        I guess the experience is not unique to us. We’ve all had times when there was nothing we could say but surrender to the moment — whether it be grief or joy — and just express what we feel through our touch.

         Touch conveys what words cannot. And it’s the same with Jesus. He performed more miracles through His hands.

         It makes me wonder now how powerful physical touch can be. And if that is so, how much holier can we be if we use our hands only for good deeds? If we can raise our hands in worship, why do we also use them to violate another person? If we receive the Eucharist through our hands, why do we use the same for gambling or stealing? If we touch Jesus’ statue to connect with Him, why do we also use our hands to send text messages that disconnect us from Him?

       Our hands form part of the temple of the Holy Spirit. Do we keep them holy? Tess V. Atienza (theresa.a@shepherdsvoice.com.ph)

Reflect: How do you want God to touch you today? And how can you touch another?

Dear Jesus, touch me in a special way today. I need You. Amen.

Blessed William Carter, pray for us.

The spiritual life is a daily battle against sin and temptation. This is seen in Israel’s history where the people’s faithfulness to God — King David and King Solomon, for example — led them to prevail against their enemies. But disaster struck when these kings became unfaithful to God. It is the same for us — our faithfulness to God will lead us to eternal life.

1 The Philistines gathered for an attack on Israel. Israel went out to engage them in battle and camped at Ebenezer, while the Philistines camped at Aphek. 2 The Philistines then drew up in battle formation against Israel. After a fierce struggle Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who slew about four thousand men on the battlefield. 3 When the troops retired to the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord permitted us to be defeated today by the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the Lord from Shiloh that it may go into battle among us and save us from the grasp of our enemies.” 4 So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there the ark of the Lord of hosts, who is enthroned upon the cherubim. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were with the ark of God. 5 When the ark of the Lord arrived in the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth resounded. 6 The Philistines, hearing the noise of shouting, asked, “What can this loud shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” On learning that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp, 7 the Philistines were frightened. They said, “Gods have come to their camp.” They said also, “Woe to us! This has never happened before. 8 Woe to us! Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods? These are the gods that struck the Egyptians with various plagues and with pestilence. 9 Take courage and be manly, Philistines; otherwise you will become slaves to the Hebrews, as they were your slaves. So fight manfully!” 10 The Philistines fought and Israel was defeated; every man fled to his own tent. It was a disastrous defeat, in which Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. 11 The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were among the dead.

R: Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.

9 [10] Yet now you have cast us off and put us in disgrace, and you go not forth with our armies. 10 [11] You have let us be driven back by our foes; those who hated us plundered us at will. (R) 13 [14] You made us the reproach of our neighbors, the mockery and the scorn of those around us. 14 [15] You made us a byword among the nations, a laughingstock among the peoples. (R) 24 [25] Why do you hide your face, forgetting our woe and our oppression? 25 [26] For our souls are bowed down to the dust, our bodies are pressed to the earth. (R)

People with leprosy were shunned in society. In today’s Gospel, it made sense for Jesus to command the man with leprosy “not to tell anyone.” What Jesus is illustrating here is the compulsion of the healed person to share his blessing. Shouldn’t it be the same for us who have received the gift of salvation? As sinners, we were once excluded from heaven. But the gate has now been opened to us through Jesus.

Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom and cured every disease among the people.

40 A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” 41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.” 42 The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. 43 Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. 44 Then he said to him, “See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.” 45 The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.

think: Like the leper, where do you need Jesus’ healing touch in your life?

Read the Bible in one year John 7-9

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________

WHAT GOD REALLY WANTS

One of the most difficult things we grapple with in our spiritual growth is how to know the will of God. What does God really want? Often, we identify with the leper healed by Jesus in the Gospel today. Here we find God wanting only the best for us, with Jesus declaring, “I do will it. Be made clean.” Such is the goodness and kindness of God to us His children. But there are also occasions when we come to Him for important favors but do not get what we ask for.

       Like the Israelites in the First Reading who, despite their earnest prayers for God’s help, suffered a disastrous defeat in the hands of the Philistines. They even brought the ark of God in the battlefront, but to no avail. Worst, the Philistines captured the ark of God and killed the two priests who were the sons of Eli. Did not God will the victory of the Israelites? It was perfectly good for Israel to win in that battle but they lost despite their prayers to Him.  

       There is no doubt that God wills only the best for us as Jesus told the leper, “I do will it.” He answers all our prayers, though sometimes He says no instead of yes. But perhaps what we need to keep in our minds and hearts is the leper’s attitude. Before that openness to the will of Jesus, the leper “came and knelt” before Jesus. The leper got his prayer or wish because he was humble before God. He recognized Jesus as Lord, not as a miracle worker. It is sad that we sometimes ask Jesus to function as an automated teller machine — we enter our personal identification number, and presto! What God really wants is that we keep our relationship with Him alive and vibrant. He wants us to remain His children, with Him as our Father whom we love and trust by trying to lead holy lives, unlike the two sons of Eli, or to a large extent, like the Israelites who were unfaithful to God during that time. God is not a miracle worker but our Lord and Master. That is what He wants first from us when we come to Him in prayer — not to ask for something but to be one with Him, because He is our Father. Fr. Nick Lalog

------- REFLECTION QUESTIONS -------

When and why do you pray to God? How do you pray to Him?

Lord Jesus,You always will the best for us, not only physically and materially, but most of all, to be one with You. In Your mercy, redeem us for the times we have turned away from You. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ________________________________________________