Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year B

Healing of a deaf-mute

From the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Mark

At that time Jesus left the province of Tyre, passing through Sidon and heading for the Sea of Galilee, came into the territory of the Decapolis. Some people brought him a deaf man who also had difficulty speaking, and begged Jesus to lay his hand on him.Jesus took him aside, away from the crowd, put his fingers in his ears and touched his tongue with his saliva. Then, looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him ; ‘Effata’, that is, ‘Open up’.

His ears opened, his tongue was loosened, and he spoke correctly.Then Jesus ordered them But the more he commanded them, the more they proclaimed it. They were amazed and said : ‘He has done all things well: he makes the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak’. (Mk 7, 31-37)

Healing of a deaf-mute

When Jesus had left Tyre, he returned to the sea by way of the Decapolis. They brought him a deaf-mute and asked him to lay his hands on him. Jesus drew him out of the crowd, touched his ears and tongue, and raising his eyes to heaven, he said with a sigh, ‘Effata !’  The cripple was completely healed. Jesus forbade those present to tell of this miracle, but the more he forbade them, the more they published it. In extreme astonishment, they cried out : ‘He has done everything well !’ 

Jesus had advanced to the northern limits of Galilee, where the territory of Tyre began. Now, instead of immediately retracing his steps, he made a diversion further north, to Sidon Others heard him go through the territory of Sidon to return to the Sea of Galilee, crossing Lebanon in the direction of Damascus and then crossing the Decapolis. Mark does not say why Jesus chose this route. On this long journey through pagan country, he spoke regularly with his disciples. The Decapolis was a vast region beyond the Jordan, north-east of Galilee.

He had to withdraw at the request of the inhabitants, but left behind a witness to his power : ‘Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their territory.’ As Jesus got back into the boat, the possessed man begged him to be allowed to be with him. He did not consent, but said to him, ‘Go home to your family and tell them all that the Lord has done for you in his mercy. (Mk 5, 17-19) Jesus took the deaf-mute aside to be alone with the sick man, to enter into a personal relationship with him and to leave him with a deeper impression of his healing ?

The Gospel presents a number of similar events. Usually, Jesus healed only by word of mouth. What could be his aim in doing otherwise ? Some think that he wanted to make up for what was lacking in the patient’s faith; to encourage him by showing him that he cared for him with interest. Others suppose that he had in mind the witnesses to the cure and accommodated himself to their ideas about the efficacy of certain means, in order to prevent them from becoming superstitious about the miracle.

However, it must be pointed out with Olshausen that, even where Jesus did not heal by word alone, he never used means that were foreign to his person; in him resided exclusively the divine power that restored health to the sick and even life to the dead. This miracle was performed with great solemnity. Jesus, as he often did, raised his eyes to heaven, where his gaze sought all light and power from God. He sighed, either as he lifted up his ardent prayer to God, or because of the pain he felt as he took upon himself his infirmity.

Finally, he uttered the powerful word that restored to this unfortunate man the use of hearing and speech : Ephphatha ! (open up !)

Deacon Michel Houyoux

Links to other Christian sites

◊  Loyola Press : click here to read the paper → Twenty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle B

◊ Catholic Productions : click here to read the paper → The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Video  Chad Bird : click here to watch the video → https://youtu.be/zCazkCRqaZU