Gospel of Mark Scripture Collage – Healing Stories
COVID. Arthritis. Cataracts. Shingles. Diabetes. Autoimmune disorders. Migraines. These are all ailments we deal with. Heart Disease. Cancer. Alzeimers and Dementia. Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s. We know the path of aging is not for the faint of heart. Depression. Anxiety. The twin afflictions of our culture. Strained and broken relationships. Resentment. Anger. Loneliness. Isolation. Polarization, Grief. These conditions, too, affect and impact our well being personally and collectively. Despair. Guilt. Shame. These demons plague and torment our inner world. Toss in the so-called Seven Deadly Sins: Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride and we have a cornucopia of afflictions that impact us all. From the incidental to the chronic, from the annoying to the life-altering and life-threatening, we face a whole host of things that leave us all unwell in some way. Even in a society with all kinds of amazing medical advances and interventions, even as beings that are so fearfully and wonderfully made by God, we still experience illness in its many forms and there isn’t always a ready fix–a cure, a pill, a treatment, a solution.
More and more we are learning that we cannot untangle our physical suffering from our emotional and spiritual suffering. They are all connected and interrelated. What affects one part of us ripples through our whole being. Nor can we untangle our afflictions from the people around us. When we are unwell, it impacts our families and the wider community where we seek care. We are also learning more about how some relationships and even the whole culture we have created can be toxic and unhealthy, impacting all of us in some way whether we are conscious of that effect or not.
I have intentionally cast a wide net here, catching physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social and cultural disease as part of our reality. Maybe you see where I am going with this. We are all unwell in some way, and we are all impacted directly by someone else who is unwell. Some of us are ill with common things, and some of us with disease names so long we can hardly pronounce them. Some of us are afflicted with demons we have wrestled all our lives, and some with new conditions we never saw coming. We are all wounded and suffering to some degree. As individuals, as families and as a church community we are carrying a great deal these days.
And if we are all unwell, then we are all in need of healing. We search desperately for answers even while we fear what we may find out. We long to be made well. We pray for relief, for mercy. So many of us are also caregivers so we search for answers and treatment options for our loved ones too. We long for healing for them. We pray for relief, for mercy on their behalf. And with our healthcare system in crisis, illness and the pathway to healing are top of mind for many of us.
I have used a broad definition of illness and disease here, so the good news is we can also use a broad definition of healing. And I am in good company here because Jesus did more than cure physical ailments. His healing included the minds and spirits and families and communities of the people he healed. That is good news.
So what do we mean by healing? At its simplest healing means being restored to wholeness. That sense of Shalom that we talked about back in our fall worship series. It means a sense of harmonious well being in all aspects of life, a sense of being at ease, and at peace. It means contentment, where the needs of body, mind and spirit are met. And it extends beyond the personal to include harmonious well being in relationships, in family and in the culture, community or nation. Our sense of wholeness is connected to that of others. If all is not well with my neighbour it isn’t with me either.
The impulse toward Shalom–wholeness is baked right into God’s design for our world. God’s work, in and through all of creation is oriented toward healing, restoration and renewal. As the circle of life unfolds in our world we see that decline, decay and death all have roles to play in bringing new life, in creating the conditions for new growth. All living beings play their parts in the cycle of life. And we can see that where there is damage and destruction, the Earth, in God’s amazing design, works to filter, recycle, heal, cleanse and restore its air, waters and soil. Healing is central to who God is as creator and how God operates.
Healing stories take up more space in the gospels than any other kind of writing. Healing is Jesus’ identity and primary activity–the way he demonstrates the good news. He allowed the love and mercy and compassion of God to flow through him and bring healing for all sorts of ailments. It is a big reason why people flocked to Jesus, crowded around him, even impeding his ability to travel about the countryside, and found creative ways to get his attention. In Jesus’ presence people experienced compassionate care and relief from suffering. Jesus healed all kinds of people and he crossed religious, ceremonial and cultural boundaries to do so. He healed both rich and poor, men, women and children, even the untouchable ones shunned by society.
The very first healing story in Mark takes place in the synagogue. It is interesting to note that Jesus’ healing ministry quickly becomes a lightning rod for tension. He clashes with the religious leaders when he touches those that are ritually unclean, heals on the Sabbath and forgives sins when surely God alone can forgive sins. Early in his ministry Jesus challenges the authority of systems and structures that judge, exclude, control, and benefit only a few. Instead he helps, he heals and he forgives. His healing ministry is a sharp critique of the Pharisees, and it challenges us to ask, what does our church have to offer to those of us who are not well? Is the church an hospitable place for our ailments and our brokenness? Or is it a place where we best present a “just fine” image and keep our unsightly blemishes and failings out of sight?
As in Jesus’ day there is still a great deal of judgment, stigma and shame, associated with being broken in some way. The messiness of people’s lives makes us uncomfortable. Not so with Jesus. With illness we come face to face with our vulnerability which really means our ability to be wounded. We are fearfully and wonderfully made, but our bodies, minds and spirits also have their limits. We are finite and fragile in nature, and it scares us. Nothing brings us to our knees quite like the stark reality of illnesses and how they can leave us humbled, weak, exhausted and depleted. These are the places in our lives where Jesus works best, offering comfort, mercy, relief.
With Jesus, healing was always about more than the physical cure. With him it went deeper than that; physical healing was designed to provoke reflections about all areas of life. Often physical healing was accompanied by an experience of spiritual, mental and social healing.
Take the man who was lowered down through the roof on a stretcher–Jesus forgave him before he healed him physically. Was he paralyzed physically, but also paralyzed in spirit–unable to move forward because of the crippling grip of something else–regret, shame, guilt or despair? We don’t know but Jesus seemed to sense that something more in him needed healing than his paralyzed limbs. Or last week we briefly talked about the woman who had experienced bleeding for 12 years, and was healed when she touched the hem of Jesus’ cloak. In her case Jesus recognized how she was shunned from the community, considered ritually unclean, so beyond her physical healing, he also restored her to her community by healing her publically and calling her “daughter.”
These may be first century stories but they resonate with us in the twenty-first century. We can find so many places to connect with the characters in these stories and their experiences. Some of us know what it is like to be gripped by demons of guilt, shame, fear, or despair. Some of us know what it is like to be isolated or alone in our suffering like the man living out among the tombs. Some of us know stigma and judgment because of our condition. Some of us know debilitating despair, leaving us, like Jairus’ daughter unable to get out of bed, and so much dead within us. Like the boy thrown into the fire, some of us have habits, addictions and stuck patterns that are unhealthy and only cause us harm. Like Bartemaeus beside the road who threw off his cloak when Jesus called to him, some of us know that in order to be open to healing we must leave some things behind us.
In the town of Magdala, on the Sea of Galilee, much excavation and restoration work has been done on the archaeological remains found there, some going back to the first century, when the town was a busy lake-side fishing port. A beautiful church has been built in Magdala. In part the church is dedicated to Mary Magdalene–Magdala was her birthplace. It also honours other women who were disciples of Jesus.
Show slide 1 (Click on this link to see the slide. Scroll down to find the tab for the Encounter Chapel) Encounter Chapel mural
On the lower level, there is a mural on the wall of what is called the Encounter Chapel. Here the floor is excavated down to the level of the first century marketplace of the Magdala port, as busy a spot as you can imagine in any town, where Jesus and his followers probably walked.
The mural depicts the story of the woman we read about last week, who reached out to touch Jesus’ cloak in a desperate effort to experience healing.I would like to spend a few minutes with this mural. It helps to express so much of our theme this morning.
What do you notice? Pause. Here are a few of my observations:
This is a mural busy with movement–all those feet–the woman has to struggle to even get close to Jesus. Everything it seems is working against her–all the bodies in the way and in such a busy and public place. Does this speak to all the things that get in the way of our own ability to reach out for help? What barriers keep us from reaching out for healing? Distraction. Shame. Anxiety. Our status.
The woman’s posture is low to the ground, and bent over. She is under the radar of the others, hardly noticed, isolated in her unique shame.This speaks to how suffering and pain can isolate us, burden us and weigh us down.
Notice her hand reaching out to Jesus’ cloak. In that gesture we feel the desperation, the longing, the daring to hope that she can be made whole and relieved of her suffering. In most of the healing stories we read in the gospel, there is some kind of participation from the one being healed, or others acting on their behalf. There is a reaching out to Jesus–a sense that in Jesus there is something to comfort, relieve, restore to wholeness.
Notice the feet all around her–feet could trample her in that busy street. They speak to the shame and stigma that did trample on her sense of dignity, honour and belovedness, and made her untouchable.
She is an outsider here in this busy street–among the men, and yet somehow she hopes, she trusts, she knows of Jesus’ ‘power to heal, enough to risk ridicule. This speaks to her courage to be vulnerable, to reach out. More often than not we are afraid to expose our suffering. Afraid to face the judgment of others. Afraid to expose what we see as our personal shame.
Notice the light at the very centre of the mural where the woman’s hand touches the hem of Jesus’ cloak. This is the point of the encounter. In the midst of the busy, hectic, public street, she encounters Jesus. She experiences the physical healing she has so desperately sought for so many years.
That is where the story continues. Jesus notices that power has gone out of him. He asks who touched him. And she knows she has to come forward. She tells him the whole truth, unloads all of the pain and stigma and suffering. “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease,” he says. And she is healed in body, mind and spirit, restored to herself, and restored to her community, and restored to the heart of God.
The mural, painted by Daniel Cariola, is dedicated to Jesus’ encounter with all of us. One of the most meaningful prayer practices I know of is to put ourselves into the healing stories in the gospels–to be those people in need, to encounter Jesus and experience his healing. However it happens, our encounters with Jesus transforms us, restores us to wholeness. Healing doesn’t always happen in the way we would like or expect. It doesn’t always happen in a straight line either. It comes with ups and downs, setbacks and victories. And sometimes we only see it in hindsight. What do you resonate with or identify with in this mural? What might happen if you put yourself into that story?
Two weeks ago, Kevin concluded his sermon by talking about the robust nature of the message of good news found in the gospel of Mark. It is not the “quick fix or the easy answer variety,” he said, “but it is, unquestionably, the life-changing variety.” He went on to say that “any good news worth the name will have to speak into the reality of loss and grief we experience.” We need good news that has gone to the grave and witnessed the power of the resurrection (see Kevin’s sermon from January 8, 2023 on the St Jacobs Mennonite Church website, or watch the recording of that service on our youtube channel). This week I think we could add that any good news worth the name will have to speak into the reality of our sickness and our ill health. We need good news that can go to the bedside of the sick and the dying, that can go to the cancer treatment centre, the AA meeting, the encampment, the counseling office and the divorce court, that can address the polarizing political debates, and the fearful climate warnings and say even here my love will find you and surround you, even here my love is finding a way to bring healing, wholeness, hope, and new life.
So far this morning I have talked mostly about our encounters with Jesus that bring us healing. But while we are all unwell in some way and all in need of some kind of healing, we can also be agents of healing for others. Margaret Mead is an anthropologist who has reflected on what signaled the advent of human civilization. She didn’t cite the use of fire, or the creation of tools, or evidence of artistic expression. “She said researchers can mark civilization’s beginning through femurs that had broken and healed.” In prehistoric days, to break a femur (the big thigh bone) was a death sentence, unless the rest of the nomadic tribal group was willing to stop and care for the one with the broken leg. “The only way for a femur to heal was through the generosity, compassion, and sacrifice of the other humans.” So, for Mead, “the sign of humanity was not invincibility or independence or intelligence. The sign of humanity was a collective decision to care for the broken. The sign of humanity was communal participation in healing” (Amy Julia Becker, To Be Made Whole: An Invitation to Wholeness, Healing and Hope, 153).
Pain in body, mind and spirit, signals that all is not well and something needs to be tended. Being in touch with our own brokenness can enlarge our capacity for compassion, and mercy, leaving us less judgmental of others. Suffering has a way of trimming down our own self-righteous impulses and wearing off some of our sharpest edges. Maybe it can even make us more approachable, accessible, understanding of the suffering of someone else, and in that way equip us to offer healing to others. Sometimes it is those among us who have struggled the most who have the most to teach us about hope and joy. When pain breaks us down it can also break us open, tenderize us, making it possible for us to receive grace and forgiveness and unconditional love–and making it possible for us to give to others what we so longed to experience ourselves.
What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks Bartimaeus, blind and sitting beside the road begging. What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks each of us. We are carrying much, as individuals and as a community.
This morning you are all invited to participate in a ritual of anointing. It is thought that Mary of Magdala, having experienced healing herself, offered this ministry of healing to others. The ritual is simple. You will be offered the sign of the cross in oil on your hand or your forehead if you wish, and some words of blessing. (If you are watching this from home and you would like to participate, this would be a good time to get a dish or jar with a little bit of cooking oil in it). The ritual is simple but it is rich with meaning. Anointing can be a way of acknowledging the brokenness of our very human lives, seeking the touch of God’s love into that brokenness, and celebrating that God’s love is stronger than any of our pain and suffering, and even stronger than death. Participating may simply be your way of crying out to God from within your pain. Anointing can be an opportunity to respond to the call to come home to the voice that calls us beloved no matter how forsaken, forgotten or alone we feel. Anointing can also be a way to commission us and bless us to be the ones who offer that mercy and love to others. This might really resonate with those of you who are caregivers. However you come, you are welcome.
This ritual of anointing is open to all ages, including people watching at home. Children, you are welcome to participate. It will be similar to how we sometimes do communion. If you wish to participate, starting with the front pews you can come to the front of the church where Sue, Chip and I will offer anointing, by marking the sign of cross on your hand or your forehead with oil. If you are at home you can mark yourself or anyone else in your household. When we anoint you we will also offer you these words of blessing: “We anoint you with oil for healing in body, mind and spirit.” Come to the front by way of the centre aisle, and just proceed to whomever is ready for you. After the anointing you can return to your seat by one of the side aisles. Or if it is easier for you, stay in your pew and look for Kevin to come around and anoint you there. If you wish to name something that needs healing in your life–you could say a word or phrase, but you don’t need to. You could name healing in a relationship, or name your anxiety or your You can simply participate in silence. Jenny will play the piano during this time. And along with the music for meditation there is another slide here to ponder while we participate in this ritual.
Show slide 2 (Click on this link to see the slide) Jesus heals a blind man
What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks Bartimaeus, sitting beside the road begging. What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks each of us.
May God’s spirit of love move among us. If you wish to participate, please, come now and receive the oil of anointing for healing.
Prayer to end the ritual
May we be restored to ourselves, restored to each other and restored to the very heart of God, wholly loved, embraced, and held in God’s care. AMEN