Our Christian duty to heal

Wednesday,
September 25, 2019
25th Week in
Ordinary Time
First Reading:
Ezra 9: 5-9
Gospel Reading:
Lk 9:1-6
Jesus called his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to drive out all evil spirits and to heal diseases. And he sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He instructed them, “Don’t take anything for the journey, neither walking stick, nor bag, nor bread, nor silver coins; and don’t even take a spare tunic. Whatever house you enter, remain there until you leave that place. And wherever they don’t welcome you, leave the town and shake the dust from your feet: it will be as a testimony against them.” So they set out and went through the villages, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life  Experience)
Today’s Gospel reading is not only found in Luke’s but also in Mark’s Gospel. But while Mark mentions only the giving of power to the apostles over unclean spirits (Mk 6:7-13), Luke gives an additional information about Jesus giving the apostles the power to heal (Lk. 9:1). While this may be explained by the fact that Luke was a physician, his special attention to the gift of healing is not misplaced since healing was really a key element in Jesus’ ministry.
Evangelization today must also reflect the ways of Jesus by incorporating healing. Since healing of body can be taken care of by medical science, evangelizers today can concentrate on the healing of the soul. Below are some suggestions, namely, humility, edification, acceptance and Love. They form the acronym “heal” for easy recall.
“Humility” restores trust in the Church in the hearts of those scandalized by the arrogance of some Church leaders. Evangelization without humility is catastrophic because it lacks the element of service. Proud evangelizers rub salt against the open wounds of the spirit of people who are deeply hurt by their arrogance.
“Edification” is still the most effective tool of evangelization. The world is becoming intolerably noisy because of so many preachers. Let us lessen the noise by allowing action to do the talking. One overt act that preaches best is “Acceptance” of people as they are. Jesus had a preferential option for sinners. If an evangelizer cannot love sinners the way Jesus did, the least he can do is to be patient with them.
“Love” summarizes all that an evangelizer can do to walk the talk. It is very important that an evangelizer excels in the art of Christian love because in evangelization what is preached is not just any ordinary Word but the Word of Love. An evangelizer preaches best if he loves best. – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.