So Happy, I Can Barely Move

Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!

Consider my New Year's Resolution met for the month of January. Only 11 months to go....

Okay, so in this post, I thought I'd change the pace a bit, and offer you a reflection on the Gospel of Mark from a passage that I was praying with earlier today. So you know the drill: everyone get out your Bibles...even you Catholics out there (it's the big white book under all the other books on your coffee table...you know, the one with your family marriage history in it?). Okay, here goes something.

First, the passage is typed out here, because I don't know how many of you actually follow links that I post (shameless soliciting for comments attesting to this fact, *cough *cough). This is from Mark 2:1-12, but I will only post Mark 2:1-5, for the very excellent reason that my reflection only focuses on these verses. The reflection itself immediately follows:

"When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days, it became known that he was at home. Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them. They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Child, your sins are forgiven."

"Child, your sins are forgiven."

With what tenderness these words were said! How moved was the Heart of God with Love of His creature that longed to be close to Him! Fighting crowd, roof, and his own weakness, with the help and faith of his friends, the paralytic draws close to His Savior.

And yet if the paralytic longed to be close to His Savior, how much more did the Savior long to be close to Him. Nothing compares to the gap of infinity bridged by the Lord in His Incarnation, His kenosis* of Love.

Taking on the limits of human flesh, boundless love was bound to one place. Every crowd He taught left others untaught. Every roof under which He stayed shut out the heavens above. And who was more limited? He or the paralytic? For though the paralytic could not walk, the God of all the Universe could only walk to a small portion of His creation. How desperately He longed to heal and forgive them all, and yet He too was practically paralyzed. If only all creation would seek Him who was seeking all creation!

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*kenosis: The self-emptying of the Second Person of the Trinity when He became man, especially referred to in St. Paul's Letter to the Philippians (2:7). Yes, I am in seminary.

So there it is. It all came to me in prayer. Just a work of inspiration. The only thing I ask is that if you plan to use it in a Homily (I'm speaking now to a very specific group of individuals), please site the Source (i.e. not me...though you can send any "loving contributions" my way if you think royalties are necessary.)

God bless!