the faith of a foot washer

        In John 12, Mary of Bethany washed the  feet of Jesus and anointed his feet with expensive oil,  presumably in gratitude for having raised her brother Lazarus from the dead.   Jesus, the anointed one-- for that is what the designation "Christ" means--accepts this anointing from her  in anticipation of his death and burial.  In John 13, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples revealing the very intimate nature of God's grace.  He instructed them to do for each other what he had done for them. Those who would share the very life of God would need to incarnate the faith that God has in us,  knowing our sinfulness.    Again in Luke 7,  Jesus said to his host, a Pharisee, “Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair... So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love.  But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little." He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." The others at table said to themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"  But he said to the woman "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

        Jesus had earlier warned his followers that unless their righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees they could not enter the kingdom of heaven.  It was not for lack of prayer, or alms giving, or even following the commandments as they understood them, that the scribes and Pharisees could not enter the kingdom, they took great care to do all those things. They did not lack the abundant  love of God for them. He sent his only son to be their revelation, their teacher.  But they lacked the simple faith of this sinful woman  foot washer,  a faith like that faith which God himself has for us,  a faith in sinners-- that we will change our ways over time with his help. The scribes and Pharisees  firmly believed that prostitutes and tax collectors needed God's forgiveness in a way they did not.  They read the scriptures to fit their on prejudices and purposes, but were not open to hearing what the the scriptures really meant.    Jesus,  in the last chapter of Luke's gospel, shares with a couple disciples on their way to Emmaus what the scriptures meant.  

Healing the Paralytic--A Dilemma Explored

February 13, 2011

Ann,

May I pick your brain on a dilemma that I have long wrestled with in the story of the healing of the paralytic?

Let F = forgiving and H = healing.
Let us assume that doing the easier cannot prove that I can do the harder, only the reverse: if I can do the harder, I can do the easier. Even children in the playground often try to outdo each other in feats and accept this assumption as self-evident.

When Jesus asks the Pharisees which is easier, F or H, we are not told what they answered. We are told only what Jesus says: but to prove to you that I can do F, I’ll do H. Sometimes I think the little word “but” holds the clue as to what the Pharisees said, but I can’t quite figure it out.

Here’s the dilemma (or mine, tiny poor Pharisee that I am):

If F is easier, doing H proves that I can do F, but now I am famous mainly for doing H, the harder, i.e., performing a physical miracle, a variety of the 2 miracles (turning a stone into bread and leaping unharmed from the parapet) I rejected in the desert when tempted by Satan. I have played to the crowd. Another way to put it is: if F is easier, what’s the point of proving F? We normally try only to prove things that are difficult, unless we want to say that F is still difficult but easier than H. If F and H are equally difficult, then Jesus is asking a question impossible to answer.

Baby Hope Rose Brintnal

This is Ignatius' new baby wearing Sr. Charlotte's hand crocheted baby blanket and Anne Joseph's hat. Much love and the prayers of John Paul II accompany this gift. Here's hoping for another miracle Like our Mother Foundress' for baby Reesa in the Philippines.