The Monotony of the Miracles
I don’t know about you, but personally it often becomes so difficult for me to relate to the miraculous stories of the gospels, not because of their miraculosity, but due to the simple fact that there is no way for me to enter into the story. It’s not personal to me because it’s not something I can imagine actually happening in my life. Suffice it to say I can be rather self-centered in my scripture reading. Another of the reasons is that these are stories that I have heard so many times that I think there can’t possibly be anything transformative in them for me.
Now I realize that this is an unfortunate view to have of the gospels of which St. Paul proclaims:
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel. It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.”
And this past Sunday in finding myself with this mindset of passing over this story of healing in naive self-centeredness, something hit me—the Holy Spirit no doubt—and I made the realization that maybe it wasn’t the scripture passage that was empty, but rather, yours truly. User error as we geeks like to call it.
I’ve Got Good News for You, Girlfriend
Instead of putting down the Bible and moving on I read and re-read the gospel passage, invoking the Holy Spirit—the breath, the voice of God—to assist me in opening my heart and my mind to the living Word of God. Then I went line-by-line through the passage asking questions like: What is the significance of being deaf? Well if you’re deaf you can’t hear the Good News, you can’t know the Word. And in those days few people could read, so this deaf man in the story must’ve been completely oblivious to the teachings of this dynamic, radical new super-rabbi that didn’t just talk the talk, but walked the walk as well. Lucky for this guy he had some good friends or family, who though they couldn’t tell him about the Word, were willing to bring him to meet this Jesus, the Word made flesh.
“He took him off by himself away from the crowd. He put his finger into the man’s ears and, spitting, touched his tongue; then he looked up to heaven and groaned, and said to him, “Ephphatha!” (that is, “Be opened!”) And [immediately] the man’s ears were opened, his speech impediment was removed, and he spoke plainly.”
This man who couldn’t hear the Word has had a profound experience with the Word—which is even better right? Around this point I started to realize certain similarities between this deaf man and myself. I remembered that not long ago I was deaf to the voice of God, blind to His actions, unable to even perceive His presence in my life. I did not believe, because I did not know. But there were some people who entered into my life—just like the friends of the deaf man, namely my wife and her family—who brought me along with them to Mass every Sunday. I tagged along to make a good impression on my girlfriend at the time, but I felt that there was really nothing in it for me.
Then it happened. That hot Sunday in Phoenix, Arizona when although my girlfriend had to work I decided to go to Mass on my own. Don’t ask me why. I can only attribute it to the workings of the Spirit in my life, but on that day as I sat in the pews I encountered God. It was as if someone grabbed ahold of me and said “be opened” and my heart of stoned cracked just enough to let in the Lord. I was changed forever. It was a big deal for me, although none of the people around me had a clue what was going on, since they were actually paying attention to the Mass. For them it was just another Sunday Mass, but for me it was the beginning of a journey.
The Word of God is Life-Changing
So now I’m feeling really bad that I had just passed over this story. After really praying about it and reflecting on it I had come to see that I was exactly like that deaf man that was brought to Jesus and cured. Then another question arose: What would it feel like to hear for the first time? I remembered a video I had seen on Facebook months earlier and realized that it is an unforgettable, life-changing experience like this deaf woman who after 29 years receives a hearing implant and is able to hear for the first time.
That’s what the gospel can do. That’s why it’s called Good News! It’s good news because it is transformative, inviting us to a life-changing encounter with God. Not just once, but every time we open the scriptures. As Catholics we believe that the Bible is the living Word of God, because it’s alive and it gives life. I’ve definitely learned my lesson of going through the motions with a topical, superficial reading of the gospels. I realize I’ve got to go deeper into them and ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit so that I can hear God speaking to me, so that I can see those ancient stories come alive and change me forever.
Experiential Evangelization
Towards the end of the passage Jesus tells the deaf man and his friends not to tell anyone about what had happened. Really!? Does Jesus really expect that in giving this guy a voice that he isn’t going to speak? In changing his life, does He expect him not to tell anyone? I’m not even going to attempt to explain Jesus’ motives, but what I see is that the man encountered God, is healed, is changed, and he goes out and proclaims it! That’s evangelization!
To evangelize doesn’t mean just to teach about God, but also and more importantly to know God yourself and invite others to know Him. And that’s what this guy did. He shared His personal experience, His supernatural encounter with the God-man Jesus Christ. This is something that we as Christians, especially us Catholics, must do. We don’t need to get into debates about theology, doctrine, and canon law—although I wouldn’t dismiss the importance of apologetics and the need for a good instruction in the faith—the first step in evangelizing has to be in telling others about our experience, encounter, and ongoing relationship with the God of the universe. That’s where it begins. That’s where it began for the deaf man and that’s where it began for me.
I caution you that the experience of God, as amazing as it is, is not the goal of our worship. God reveals Himself to us how and when and if He pleases. He knows when we need Him. If we make it all about the experience, then we are in essence trying to control God. If we get mad that He doesn’t answer our prayers when and how we want, then we are making God in our image. We shouldn’t expect a divine vision or mystical experience every time we go to Mass. We cannot control God. We can make the effort to get to know Him better, but the results are His.
So I encourage you to challenge yourself every time you open the scriptures to first realize and acknowledge that they are more than fairy tales, they are the Good News, the living Word of God. That means God is always there speaking to you through the scriptures, but you have to “be opened” in order to hear His voice. So ask the Holy Spirit to come on the journey with you and you will be amazed at where He can take you.