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Place
the Word on Your Heart
Fr.
George Smiga
November
12, 2006
Mark
12:38 - 44
Jewish
rabbis take the bible very seriously. Because they believe
it is God's word they are convinced that nothing in the bible
is there by chance. Every word, every expression, every comma
has a significance. On one occasion two rabbinical students
were discussing a passage from the book of Deuteronomy. They
were trying to understand why God commanded us in that book
to put the word of God on our hearts. Why did God
not say to put God's word in our hearts? Is not that
where the word of God should be? Since they could not figure
this out, they went to ask the rabbi why does the bible say
we are to place the word of God on our hearts instead of in
our hearts? This was his response: “We are commanded to place
the word of God on our hearts because our hearts are closed
and the word of God cannot get in. So God commands us to place
the word of God on our hearts. And there it sits there it
waits. It waits for the day when our hearts will be broken.
When they are broken, then the word of God will fall gently
inside.”
How
wise this explanation is! We all here believe in God. We all
would express our conviction that God loves us and will save
us. But when things are going well, when we are confident
in our strength and success, when we are convinced that we
can handle things on our own, God's word sits on our hearts.
It cannot get inside, because our hearts are too full of ourselves.
So God's word sits and waits until we fail, until we are hurt,
until we have to struggle with sickness, addiction, pain,
or death. It waits until our hearts break, then it falls gently
inside and gives us both power and peace. Those who know their
own need are the ones who can carry the word of God in their
hearts. Those who struggle with weakness and failure are the
ones who truly experience the power and peace of God's presence.
Those who are in need are those who truly believe.
This
is why in today's first reading and the Gospel the central
characters are widows. In the ancient world a widow was the
most vulnerable member of society. Without family her need
was paramount. Her need nurtured her faith. Without family
on which to depend, she depended on God alone.
It
is easier to believe the word of God, when we recognize our
own need. This is why it is a tremendous blessing for us this
evening to be celebrating the sacrament of the anointing of
the sick at this liturgy. For this sacrament is a blessing
for us all. For those who come forward to be anointed and
for those of us who do not. Those of you here who plan to
receive the sacrament, who in a few moments will come forward
to be anointed, you know your need. You know the fear you
have with sickness and advancing age. You know the worries
about the future and how you will cope with that future. Your
hearts are broken and this sacrament provides the opportunity
to let the love and presence of God in. God speaks to you
in this sacrament and promises that whatever the future brings
you need not face it alone. God will be with you and the community
of your brothers and sisters in faith will be with you. As
you come forward to be anointed let the saving presence of
God into your heart. Trust in that presence as you face the
future.
But
the sacrament of the anointing of the sick is not simply for
those who choose to be anointed. It is a sacrament in which
all of us play a role. Our role of course is to support our
brothers and sisters who come forward to be anointed, to support
them with our presence, our love, and our prayers. But our
role is larger than that. Our role is to be attentive, to
attend to what is about to unfold in our midst. As others
come forward to be anointed it is not time for us to look
away or to think of something else. We need to be attentive
to what we see, what we hear, and what we feel. We are called
to see in the need of those who come forward a reflection
of the needs in our own lives wherever those needs might be.
We are called to see in the struggle of those dealing with
sickness and old age an invitation to recognize our own fragility.
Someday we too may struggle with sickness and the pains of
aging. We are called to see in the faith of those who come
forward an invitation for ourselves to believe more deeply.
So
this sacrament, which we are about to share, is our sacrament.
It is a sacrament of all of us gathered here, whether we choose
to be anointed or not. For in this sacrament we express our
common faith in a God whose stands with us in our need, in
a God who promises to heal us in our struggles. Our needs
are in different areas but we stand together tonight as a
broken community. And there is no shame in that, because it
is through our brokenness that the love of God gets in.
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