9th Week in Ordinary Time 2021 - Friday - The healing of Tobit's Blindness

 Last week our first readings came from the Book of Sirach; this week they’ve been from the Book of Tobit. But because of all the wonderful feast days of the saints, we haven’t really been reading from Tobit. 

So firstly, who is Tobit anyway? Tobit describes himself in the first chapter of his book as a Jew from northern Israel taken to Nineveh in slavery by the Assyrians. He was a very successful businessman, he was faithful to all his religious duties and generous to the poor, married to a beautiful and pious wife.

One day, through a strange act of providence, he went blind—bird droppings fell into his eyes and blinded him and he developed cataracts. For 4 years, he goes to doctors, and his blindness only gets worse. His life becomes unraveled. His marriage becomes rocky. Tobit becomes so despondent that he wants to die. He reminds us a lot of Job. He seems cursed. His faith was certainly being tested.

And yet, through their sufferings, both Tobit and Job come to a deeper understanding of God. In many of the speeches of Tobit and Job, why find them crying out to God, “Why me?” What did I do wrong to deserve this suffering? I diligently obeyed God’s rules, why is this happening to me? Both Tobit and Job seemed to be operating under this very prevalent idea, that If I obey all God’s rules, He will bless me with earthly prosperity. 

But, both Job and Tobit come to discover that God is worthy of worship and adoration and love not just when things are going well in our lives, but also when things aren’t going well. 

This realization, this deepening of faith in Tobit and Job, is a foreshadowing of the Lord’s teaching in the Gospels on the cross. Jesus promises his disciples a share in the cross. Each of us will bear a cross, many crosses in life—temptations and sufferings and setbacks and losses and bodily ills. 

The Christian disciples is called to a much more radical faith, than of those who only praise God when things go well, or who only worship God in hopes of earthly prosperity. We are to be bearers of the cross, who trust in God’s providence, who worship God even when we are sharing deeply in the sufferings of Christ. 

When he finally comes to trust in God’s providence, Tobit receives a healing from God. His son returns with medicine—his cataracts are able to be removed—reminding us of the scales that fall from the eyes of St. Paul—when he comes to faith in Christ Jesus. 

Deeper faith, deeper trust brought spiritual healing for Tobit, the healing of spiritual blindness. This story helps us to yearn for a healing of all of our spiritual blindnesses which keep us from trusting in God and embracing God’s will for our lives. May we come to see God’s goodness and God’s majesty in the crosses of our lives, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

That all members of the Church will discover and offer their gifts wholeheartedly in service of the Gospel. 

For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus, that young people may live in faith-filled homes where the Gospel is cherished, studied, and lived-out.

For all of the sick and suffering, for the grace to unite their sufferings with Christ and to know His consolation and peace.

For our departed loved ones and all of the souls in purgatory, and for N. for whom this Mass is offered. We pray to the Lord.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

5th Week in OT 2018 - Friday - Healing divided kingdoms and divided hearts

Scripture portrays Solomon's reign as the high point of Jewish political and economic history. King Solomon’s riches and wisdom surpassed all the kings of the earth. His kingdom was so formidable that for years he never even had to fight a war.

In a prophetic gesture, Ahijah the prophet ripped his coat into 12 pieces to show how Solomon's seemingly invincible kingdom would be torn to pieces. Ahijah's shocking prophecy soon proved true when civil war divided the country after Solomon's death.

Jesus teaches that “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste.” President Lincoln quoted this verse when speaking about our divided nation during the civil war. The most established, endowed, seemingly impregnable, and developed organizations and systems will quickly collapse if the hearts of people are not entirely with the Lord. Sin has a terrifying power to bring division in any human endeavor--in governments, dioceses, parishes, families, and marriages. 

In less than a week we begin the season of Lent. The devil fears Lent because it can be a time of great spiritual healing, where the causes of division in our organizations and in our hearts are uprooted and mended by our Lenten prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Throughout the Gospels Jesus healed people physically as a sign of the deeper spiritual healing he came to bring to all mankind. He opened the ears of the deaf and freed the tongues of the dumb and speech-impaired as a sign that He would open our ears so that we can have a greater faith and open our mouths to proclaim that faith.

The Lord will heal the wounds of sin and division, he will heal our spiritual deafness, dumbness, blindness, our spiritual paralysis, he will make our families and parishes endure, if we let him, if we allow him to reign over our hearts.

We can open ourselves to receive deep spiritual healing and transformation by engaging rigorously in the Lenten practices, by repenting of sin, and committing to living and sharing the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the Holy Father’s prayer intention for the month of February, that those who have material, political or spiritual power may resist any lure of corruption.

For those who have fallen away from the Church, for those who have fallen into serious sin, for those who have lost faith in God, for those who reject Church authority, for all troubled marriages, for the healing of all sin and division.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

Homily: Thursday - 3rd Week of Lent 2017 - Deliverance from demons of the tongue

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus’ many healing miracles were not simply of a physical nature, but of a spiritual nature as well. Jesus heals physical blindness to point to the greater spiritual blindnesses that he came to heal. He cures our spiritual blindness that we may see the truth of God, that we may look beyond our own selfish desires to the needs of the poor, that we may in eternity come to behold the glory of the Lord in heaven. Jesus heals our deafness, that we may listen once again to the promptings of the Holy Spirit instead of our own egos and selfish desires. Jesus heals us when we are lame, that we might walk once again in the ways of righteousness and peace. Jesus heals our muteness that our tongues might proclaim the Gospel, to use our tongues for God’s purposes.

We are all in need of this spiritual healing, aren’t we? Spiritual blindness, spiritual deafness, spiritual lameness, spiritual muteness. Our Lenten observances are so important because they expose us to healing. Prayer exposes us to the healing presence of God, almsgiving exposes us to the healing that comes through service, through charity. Fasting, the healing that comes through self-restraint, the healing of our unrestrained passions which are meant to be placed under the dominion of God and the use of our reason.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus cures one afflicted with a demon of muteness. Again, all of us are tongued-tied in a way, we fail to proclaim the Gospel as we should. We particularly find it difficult to utter words like “I’m sorry”, or “Here, let me help you.”

St. James says that our tongue is a small part of our body with great power. “Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze,” he says. A small fire, a small word, can cause great destruction. “The tongue is also a fire… It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison”

On one hand, we are tongue tied; on the other hand, our tongues so often are used to spread evil: gossip, detraction, calumny, bullying, blasphemy, ludeness and perversion, cursing instead of blessing, foolishness instead of wisdom, discord instead of harmony.

We are more than half way through Lent now, how well have you been using your tongue this Lent? To bless? To pray? To encourage? To uplift? To instruct?

St. Peter says, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.”

Through our Lenten observances may the Lord deliver us from all spiritual muteness and misuse of our lips and tongues, for the spread of the Gospel, for the Glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For greater devotion in our Lenten prayer, greater self-restraint in our Lenten fasting, and greater selflessness in our Lenten almsgiving.

That civil leaders will use their authority to protect the dignity of human life and the well-being of the poor, especially the unborn.  We pray to the Lord.

For deliverance from demons of drug abuse, addiction, insanity, occultism, sexual perversion, greed, and any spiritual evils which degrade the human person.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter, that these weeks of Lent may bring them purification and enlightenment in the ways of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation or illness: that the tenderness of the Father’s love will comfort them.  We pray to the Lord.