In Mark’s Gospel for the day, we read about the rising popularity of Jesus as He did His ministry. People from different places, including pagan and Gentile lands, began to follow Him after hearing of how He cured many others of their bodily and spiritual illnesses. They wanted to even just touch Him, believing that alone would suffice to heal them. As Jesus saw such a large crowd trying to press upon Him, He asked the disciples for a boat where He could stand on.
Because of the power of Jesus, even the “unclean spirits,” which refer to “evil spirits” and “demons,” could not deny the revelation that He truly is the Messiah. They would fall down and shout, “You are the Son of God.” Since Jesus knew that the people were not yet prepared to completely understand this Divine mystery, and that the will of God for Him was to go through His Passion, Death on the Cross, and Resurrection, He commanded those evil spirits to be silent.
My Reflection
1. We all want to be cured of our illnesses. These illnesses can be sicknesses of the body, of the mind, of the emotion, of the soul. For the body, it can range from mild to chronic diseases. For the mind, psychological ailment could be in the form of depression, or mental issues with deeper roots, resulting from severe brokenness and traumas. For the emotion, many suffer from hurts and pains caused by other people that they cannot get over with. For the soul, the devil and the evil spirits cause afflictions through possession, oppression, or being “haunted.”
2. Because of advancement in science, and influence of the secular world, we try to get better or cure ourselves of our illnesses solely with medicines. Many are very much into all kinds of diets and supplements nowadays. At times, those psychologically and emotionally sick try to “heal” through short-term pleasures, like having various forms of fun, whether wholesome or not, just to get a temporary “fix.”
3. This means that many people try to find all sorts of cure from different people and various things on earth, but the last thing that ever comes to mind is to seek the cure from God, and lay out these problems to Him in prayer. What happens is that the secular world removes the idea and the act of putting our faith in the Almighty God. Humanity has faith in humans, but not in God.
4. I’m not saying that we should not take medicines or supplements, eat the right diet, or seek appropriate therapy. We need all of those, depending on our condition, and we should receive the most proper medical care, as much as we can afford. However, we tend to forget that, along with medical care, we can only get the best healing and real cure if we form a relationship with Jesus Christ.
“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.”
– Saint Thomas Aquinas
5. Thus, a person with any form of sickness must not only find cure through medication and treatment. First and more importantly, he must have faith in God and obtain His grace of healing by availing the Sacraments of the Catholic Church like frequent reception of the Eucharist and regular Confession (Reconciliation or Penance), as well as by praying Marian devotions, especially the Rosary.
Others who are gravely ill must also have no fear to go to a priest and seek healing through the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, which is very helpful in dispensing God’s sanctifying grace for the sick to be cured or to be given the strength amidst the illness.
6. Worldlings, that is, the people of secular world, may laugh or smirk at a sick person who devotedly prays to God for healing and faithfully puts all his trust in Him. For example, they do not acknowledge God’s healing that comes from touching the relics of the Saints. They ask all sorts of questions just to disprove the miracles, which happen, for example, in the pilgrimage sites of Vatican-approved Apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary such as Our Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of Fatima.
7. The Catholic Church teaches us to know better and to live our Faith deeper. As in the quote above by Saint Thomas Aquinas, faith is everything to the one who believes. But the one without faith will never believe, even when the miracles are right in front of them. No matter how much unbelievers hear the Scripture, they are still not going to be convinced.
Without the richness of the Faith, other Non-Catholic denominations and sects give excuses for rejecting the fullness of the healing power of Jesus — not believing in the intercession of the Saints, not believing in the aid of sacramentals and sacred relics, not giving respect and honor to the Blessed Mother as our most powerful intercessor to God, and not believing in the Eucharist of the Mass and other Sacraments. Their unbelief sometimes even comes with words of mockery and scorn. However, they do not realize that refusing to acknowledge the fullness of the teachings of the Catholic Church is like refusing to acknowledge the power of Jesus Himself, the Son of God.
8. This particular Gospel reading shows us how even the demonic spirits from two thousand years ago acknowledged that Jesus is “The Son of God.” If fallen angels themselves declare that Jesus is the Son of God, then what position do human beings have to go against God’s Word and refuse to believe the Catholic Church that Jesus Himself founded?
9. Do not be swayed away from your faith by unbelievers, doubters and critics of the Church. Especially when you are weak, remain in the practice of your faith – Sacraments, prayers, devotions, penance, offerings, use of sacramentals and relics. We must approach Jesus in the fullness of our Faith so that we may be filled completely by His power and grace.
10. If you desire to be healed of any physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual illness, then do as those people in the Gospel did — press upon Jesus to “touch” Him — have faith in Him, seek Him, follow Him, come to Him, try to get the closest you can to Him. The more we humbly recognize how sick we are, the more we open ourselves to God for true healing and allow Him to touch us with the real cure.
Mass Readings for the Day:
1 Samuel 18:6-9; 19:1-7; Psalm 56:2-3, 9:10A, 10B-11, 12-13; 2 Timothy 1:10; Matthew 3:7-12
A prayer that I wrote for the day:
Jesus, as I lay my afflictions of mind, body, and soul on Your Sacred Heart, I humbly ask You to heal my wounded heart and spirit, and to restore my whole being in Your love.
St. Thomas Aquinas, Patron Saint of my alma mater, University of Santo Tomas, pray for us!
St. Joseph, pray for us!
Mama Mary, pray for us!
Amen.
She graduated cum laude from the University of Santo Tomas, the country's Pontifical and Catholic university, with an AB in Legal Management and minor units in Theology.
As an unmarried woman, prayer holds a central place in her daily life, with a focus on the Rosary and the Divine Office. Embodying her faith, she emphasizes the growth of her inner spiritual life, guided by the wisdom of Carmelite spirituality.
God manifested to her in a unique and radical manner, which made her know Who He truly is and led her to total surrender of her life to Him.
She has studied the Bible with her family, developing a particular fondness for the Old Testament.
Her adorable and intelligent toy poodle is a delightful companion in her daily life, bringing warmth and joy to her home.
Her hobbies include reading about everything, learning Japanese and German, listening to music and playing the flute.
In her leisure time, she enjoys gaming on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch OLED, Nintendo 3DS, iOS and OS, and collecting things related to PlayStation and Nintendo.
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