We can identify with at least three classes of people in the Gospel. The first character is the woman. She was not sick, but because of her great love for her daughter, she was suffering more than her. Have you ever experienced seeing a loved one in great distress, and you want to say to God, “Lord, I want to take the place of my loved one. Let me suffer instead of him. Let me suffer instead of her”? That is the woman in the Gospel. She was not sick, but inside she was suffering intensely. She was not afraid, she was not ashamed to be ridiculed if it would mean relief or recovery for her daughter.
The second character that we can identify with is the daughter. I am sure she was tired of being sick. I am sure that if you could ask her, she would have told you how much she wanted to be better. But there she was, helpless. She could not help herself, and she thought that there was no one willing to help her. Have you ever experienced that moment in your life when you wanted to change, and you wanted to improve and be better? You just felt so helpless; but every time you try, you get deeper and deeper into the ground. That was the daughter in the Gospel. She had problems and she was helpless.
The third type of people we could identify with are the disciples. They were with the Lord. And they did not like anybody to upset the convenience they enjoyed in being with the Lord. “We are already with God. Why should we be concerned with the sufferings of other people? It is already very cozy, very comfortable, very convenient. This woman is bothersome; she’s making noise; send her away because we want to be at peace. Isn’t religion peace? Isn’t the Church peace? Why are the poor people troubling us? Why are the poor people pricking our consciences? They should be sent away. We should be protected from them so that they would not cause us any trouble.”
Three types of people. The first kind was the mother suffering because of her great love. But she was not afraid to be embarrassed if only her daughter would be alleviated of her sufferings. The second one was the daughter suffering and being so helpless in her bed. The third one are the disciples. They are so much at peace, they did not want the sufferings of other people to bother them.
Where are you in the Gospel?
WHERE ARE YOU?
Mt 9:12
Looking For Jesus
