Fans of the show The Chosen know the episode well from which today’s Gospel is taken. The writer/director also captures the energy and the characters in this story and the tremendous amount of anguish, hope, and struggles the different folks have for seeking Christ and their healing. They each lamented in different ways but also knew to trust the Lord’s power, ability, and concern to heal them and their family member.
The healing we seek is various and ongoing in the world around us. We know so many who have cancer, abuse, the challenges of parenting and grandparenting, loneliness, and so much more. As with the show that demonstrated, through an overarching of episodes, the nameless woman with the hemorrhage finally can get to her destination to be in the presence of the Christ. Jairus and company seek a quick result only to be too late, but then later – the miracle. (Think of Australian singer Sia’s song: I don’t want to quit before the miracle!)
Perhaps the folks we know searching for healing are not yet at their destination but waiting, longing, and taking the long road toward renewal. Some have more of a fast track. In whatever way, we are reminded this day that the sacraments of the Eucharist and the Anointing of the Sick put us in touch with the process of healing and wholeness. The words, especially from the sacrament of the anointing, remind us of the hope that comes from our faith, trusting that we will be made whole in due time. Our prayers today come from the ritual to assist us in our healing hopes.
Prayer
God of mercy and compassion, through your Son, grant all comfort in their suffering. Ease their worries and comfort your servants; Give life and health to our brothers and sisters; Bless and fill them with new hope; Sustain all the sick with your power; When they are afraid, give them courage; when afflicted, give them patience, when dejected, afford them hope, and when alone, assure them of the support of your holy people. Through Christ our Lord. (Prayer adapted by John Thomas Lane SSS from Pastoral Care of the Sick: Rites of Anointing & Viaticum, paragraphs 138-142.)
