Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

Lectionary: 329

As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him. They scurried about the surrounding country and began to bring in the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.

The 2005 movie Kingdom of Heaven described the Saracen victory over Crusader defenders of Jerusalem in 1187. (The young Francis of Assisi would have shared Europe's shock and horror at the defeat.) The movie was severely criticized by historians for its inaccuracies; I was dismayed by the crusader's cry of "Freedom!;" as if they were Americans fighting another lost cause. 

We often read the scriptures as if the Lord were announcing freedom to the oppressed people of Israel. Or perhaps he was promising heaven to unhappy people. Today's gospel gives us a more accurate picture; they were desperate for healing. 

Human beings seem more vulnerable than most animals to sicknesses both acute and chronic, and to accidents, and prolonged suffering. A severely sick deer cannot live long where there are predators and scavengers. But humans care for one another. We desperately fight off illness, control contagions, provide assistance, and resist death. We have built an enormous medical institution, staffed by millions of professionals who dedicate their lives to caring for the sick. And so we survive.  

Ancient Israel had its caregivers, both men and women; some had studied medical lore and had wide experience. But when God the giver and healer of life appeared in human flesh, thousands of people flocked to him. They weren't seeking freedom. Nor even salvation, redemption, purpose, or meaning. They wanted to live. 

The entertainment industry, which occupies so much of our time and attention, tells us little about sickness and death. Millions of people don't crowd into arenas to watch a dying man breathe his last. Were it not for ads selling drugs we'd hear little about doctors, prescriptions, and illness. 

But sickness is a serious threat to freedom. When the Covid 19 epidemic hit, millions of people preferred their freedom and would not practice prevention or control of the plague. Some died with bitter regret about their foolishness, others continue to spread the illness to strangers, friends, and loved ones. 

Today's gospel reminds us of the Lord's compassion for real human suffering. He is not concerned about somebody's ephemeral freedom. When we choose to face the real problems in our lives, we turn to the Lord.