Good evening, everyone…and praise God – praise Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It’s wonderful to see you all here tonight; all open to God’s healing presence. Praise God too for this. This evening we’re blessed with a kind of trifecta, the merging of three related events. `
The first is our celebration of the memorial of a great saint, St. Martin of Tours. Perhaps most appropriately we always celebrate the feast of this 4th-century soldier/saint on November 11, Veterans Day, our second event. Many saints served as soldiers, men like Francis of Assisi and Ignatius Loyola, and like many veterans, their faith grew out of their wartime experiences.
Martin, born of a pagan, military family, became a Christian catechumen as a ten-year-old and entered the Roman Army as a teenager. One cold day, in Amiens, he encountered an unclothed beggar. Martin sliced his cloak in half and split it with the beggar. That night Christ appeared in a vision saying, “Martin, a mere catechumen, has clothed me.” As you might expect, Martin left the army and devoted his life to the Church, ultimately becoming Bishop of Tours.
Yes, a fitting patron saint for the poor, soldiers, and veterans, the perfect saint to honor on the day we thank veterans who served our nation faithfully and honorably in times of both war and peace. Finally, we ask the Spirit to extend his healing touch on all those gathered here in need of healing.
And because we’re gathered here in Jesus’ name, so we know He’s with us. And where Jesus is, so too is the Father, for they are One, One with the Holy Spirit. When we turn to Scripture, we find the Holy Spirit inspiring, revealing, anointing, and counseling. He does it all. As we proclaim in the Creed, He is the “Lord and giver of life.” He’s the fount of Truth and Wisdom, the sanctifier, the source of sacramental grace, the manifestation of God’s power in the world. When Jesus rejoiced, He rejoiced in the Spirit. When He prayed, He prayed filled with the Spirit. And when he healed, the Spirit acted through Him.
Tonight, then, confident that the Holy Spirit is here among us, present in His power and glory, we turn to Him, the Divine Healer, for healing is among the Spirit’s greatest works. As St. Peter reminded the centurion Cornelius and his household:
“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power. He went about doing good and healing all…” (Acts 10:38)
That’s right, through the power of the Spirit Jesus healed all who came or were brought to Him. Everyone who turned to Jesus for healing and forgiveness – men and women; young and old; Jews and Gentiles – all received far more than what they sought. Some come on their own, some were brought to Him by others, some were healed with a word or a touch, and some at a distance. And we find Jesus and the Spirit healing through others as well. Jesus sends his disciples out in pairs to preach the Gospel and to heal in His name. The Acts of the Apostles is filled with healings of body and soul.
Those wonderful words in our reading from the prophet Isaiah remind us of God’s healing power. How did Isaiah put it?
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me… (then he added) to heal the brokenhearted…”Years ago, Lee, a crusty old Navy warrant officer who worked for me was forced to retire because of serious heart problems. As he awaited surgery in the hospital, his wife prayed over him for several hours, repeating those words of Isaiah, the same words Jesus had proclaimed in the synagogue of Nazareth.
She was certain the Lord would heal him. And she was right! The surgeon ordered some additional images and was shocked when he saw absolutely nothing! Yes, his heart showed no signs of all the problems so evident earlier. More tests followed and afterwards the surgeon just told then both, “We had a miracle.”
Yes, indeed, deep, abiding faith can move mountains; and as Isaiah reminded us, it can also heal broken hearts. How did Jesus put it? With such faith, “Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Mt 17:20)
My old friend, Lee, went on to live 25 more years. He died a few years ago at 88, a happy man. Oh, and another wondrous thing about Lee and his wife: They spent their retirement years active in prison ministry, devoting much of their time ministering to prisoners who were ill or disabled.
This, as you might expect, leads us to our reading from chapter 25 of Matthew’s Gospel. It’s the only place in Scripture where the last judgment is described in any detail, so I suppose we should pay attention. And it reveals so very much.
Now, I can’t speak for any of you, but I’m really interested in how Jesus will judge me, and how I’ll spend eternity as a result. Will my entire life be exposed all at once? Will I see all the foolishness, all the sinfulness, all the betrayals, everything I’ve tried to hide or rationalize or repress? Yes, I think I’ll see it all. Based on what Jesus said, it seems He’ll also show me those acts of kindness and love. Will I be able to remind him of what Peter wrote:
“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)
When I ask, “Lord, Did my love cover my sins?”, how will Jesus reply? Will He ask me, “Who exactly did you love? Just your family and friends, just those who love you?” Or will He repeat what He said in today’s Gospel passage? Did you feed those who hunger and thirst? Welcome strangers? Visit the sick and imprisoned?
We’ve all heard the ancient argument about faith and works. But it’s this love, this divine love, this totally selfless love, that is driven by faith. You see, it’s through our faith in Jesus Christ that we can see him in the hungry, the stranger, the sick, the imprisoned. And only when we see Him in others, only then, can we truly manifest God’s love in the world. As St. James reminds us: “Faith without works is dead.” (James 2:26) Yes, indeed, true faith demands works.
Now, you might want to shout out:
Wait a minute, Deacon! I’m the one who needs healing. I’m the sick one here.
I’m the sinful one looking for forgiveness. Am I really forgivable?
I’m the lonely one, with no one else…the forgotten one – the one everyone ignores.
I’m the one who sees no hope, the one who doesn’t know what to believe. Or even how to believe?
Yes, you’re here tonight seeking the certainty of God’s promises, seeking hope, and healing, forgiveness, and the love of God. Sisters and brothers, when we’re hurting, when we’re in desperate need of God’s love, when we need His healing touch, ironically, we so often turn inward. It doesn’t matter if we’re suffering from physical illness and pain, or emotional and mental stress. Or perhaps, wandering aimlessly in a spiritual desert, our soul, darkened by sin, needs the merciful touch of God’s forgiveness.
In the grip of suffering, in our humanity, we turn inward, toward our suffering, hoping, somehow, for healing and relief. But Jesus, in His paradoxical, counter-intuitive way calls us to turn outward, to turn to Him in faith and to others in love.
God knows exactly what we need, but do we know? What kind of healing do you need? What do I need? We’re so sure we know, aren’t we? Often enough, especially in this community, it’s our bodies. They just don’t hold up do they? Illness, injury, and age all take their toll. We turn to God in our suffering, our fears, our aches and pains, our illnesses, in the trials of our children and grandchildren, in the sometimes-shattered lives of those we love…and we pray for healing.
We don’t understand the why of this suffering, or why God doesn’t
just take it away. And so, we pray, but not very well. As St. Paul reminded us:
“We do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself
intercedes with inexpressible groanings.” [Rom 8:26]
Now that’s amazing, isn’t it? Because we don’t know how to pray,
the Holy Spirit prays for us, intercedes for us, within the Trinity itself.
If I had time, I’d tell you of so many I’ve known, men and women who suffered greatly but never let their illness define them. They prayed always for God’s Will, since unlike our wills, it always leads to good. They were like my mother who told me on her deathbed that her illness was a wonderful gift that taught her so very much. Yes, she and so many others personified those famous words of St. Paul:
"We know that all things work for good for those who love
God, who are called according to his purpose" [Rom 8:28].
So many spend their lives fulfilling that purpose by serving and praying for others, suffering for others. Here I am, 81 years old, still praying that someday I may have such faith. As my wife, Diane, will be happy to tell you, I’m not a very good sufferer.
Just look to those seated around you, and realize you’re not alone. For they, too, are suffering. How can you serve each other? Will you pray for them, demonstrate your love for them? Do you have a spiritual cloak you can split in half and share with another?
There will be healings here tonight. Some of you have come for physical and emotional healing. And there will be some of those. But every single one of us needs spiritual healing, healing of the soul, the healing that comes from total surrender to God. With that surrender, that abandonment, God will fully supply whatever you need…”
Are you willing to make an act of surrender, an act of abandonment, and take all that you have, all that you are, and lay it at Jesus’ feet? He wants it all, you know, out of a love so great it’s beyond our understanding. Just look at the Cross. He wants us to mirror His redemptive act of love by sharing in the crosses that we each must bear.
Do we recognize the power of the collective
faith and prayers of our community?
Do we trust God can do the same for us as
faithful, prayerful people who lift others up in their need?
After Mass we’ll have a laying on of hands. Come and let others pray for and over you. Turn your heart and mind to Jesus Christ. Give Him permission to come into your life, to work His will within you.
“Heal me, Lord, and heal these others who come to you.” Let that
be your prayer. “Heal us all, Lord, of all that’s keeping us from being one
with you.”
Trust God, brothers and sisters, for He knows your heart.
Praised be Jesus Christ…now and forever.
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