Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters IN Christ:

 

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:53-56

After making the crossing to the other side of the sea, Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaret and tied up there. 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.

 

In today’s Gospel reading, again we hear the desire of the people seeking out Christ to be healed from their ailments. When the people heard that Christ was near, they flocked to see him. They brought him their sick even if they had to carry them on a mat. They had a deep desire to be freed from their inflictions. It says, “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.” All they had to do was touch his cloak and they were healed. We too should seek out Christ with the same passion of the early Jews. Every Sunday, Christ is truly present in the mass. He comes in his full glory to heal and nurture us. We should bring the sick and the unclean before his altar so that they too can touch his cloak. We must approach the Eucharist with the same passion as the Israelites approached Jesus. We must abandon our doubts and those things we put in front of us that prevent us from truly seeing Christ.

 

It says in the reading that the people “immediately recognized him.” Do you recognize Christ when he is present? We must be able to recognize Christ whenever he is present in our life. We begin to recognize Christ the more we become committed to him. The more we look for him, the easier he is to find. In the mass, we see Christ in two different ways; we see him in the Word and we see him in the Eucharist. This is when Christ should be most visible to you. Christ is also present in all the Sacraments. The sacraments allows us to reach out and touch his garments and to be healed and to be brought closer to God. But Christ is also present everyday in our lives. All we need to do is open our eyes and see his glory all around us. No matter what village or town you are in, Christ is there healing the sick and freeing us from the bondage of our sins. There is no where you can go that Christ is not present. You just need to open your eyes to see him.

 

A Simple Prayer

 

Christ, if only I could touch your garments I would be healed.

Help me to open my eyes so I can see you in my daily activities.

Help me to reveal God in my daily life so others can be saved.

 

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon