"When Jesus saw the man lying there and knew that he had been there for a long time, he said to the man, 'Do you want to be made well?'"
--John 5: 6
Healing Ground, Summerfield, NC
I spent Friday afternoon at a place called the Healing
Ground, which is affiliated with the Servant Leadership School out of Holy
Trinity in Greensboro. It's very serene and peaceful, with its lush gardens,
lake, outdoor chapel, and labyrinth. God
was there, and I could tell that this
place must have facilitated a great deal
of healing for many people. So this got
me thinking: what do we mean when we
talk about being healed?
Often our concept of healing is tied into some sort of
quick fix. We wanna feel better and we
want it now. It might be a cream that
fixes baldness or a belt that works your abs at the push of a button. Turn on any infomercial late at night and
you'll see the kinds of quick fixes that folks go after to get the healing they
want.
The Abgymnic does all the work for you!!
It's not a new phenomenon, of course. The folks in Jerusalem by the pool called
Beth-zatha wanted a quick fix. These
folks were in all kinds of bad shape, and they were certain if they could get
into that water, especially if they were first, then they'd get that quick fix
and be healed of their infirmities. They believed that an angel of God came down and touched the water,
causing it to bubble up with healing power.
Nevermind the fact that the Jewish historian Josephus points out that
the bubbling actually occurred because of a subterranean stream beneath the
pool. Those gathered there didn't care
so long as they got that quick fix, that healing for which they longed.
We meet one of those folks today, and we can hear his
frustration. He longs to get in that
pool, to get that healing, but no one will take him down there and put him
in. What he and the other folks by the
pool don't realize is that healing won't come from some superstitious waters,
but it will come from Jesus, who approaches the man and asks if he wants to be
made well. I've always been fascinated
by this line because of course the man wants to be able to walk. But as I think on this passage I begin to
think that that's not what Jesus is asking.
The Greek that is used here can be translated into "do you want to
be made well" or "do you want to be healthy" or "do you
want to be changed." Jesus' question is not just about curing he man's physical ailments, but it is about healing his very soul. True healing,
the healing of the soul, as well as the body, cannot be obtained by a quick
fix like those waters.
An artist's depiction of the lame man by the pool of Beth-zatha.
The healing that this man finds, this changed state of
being, does not come from an angelic pool, instead it comes from a relationship
with Jesus. We don't see Jesus use magic
hands or some kind of special prayer, instead he asks the man a question. He begins a conversation, and in doing so he
invites him into a relationship. It is
from that relationship with Jesus that the man finds more than just the quick
fix he thought the pool would provide.
Instead he finds a new state of being, and his life from here will never
be the same. That's real healing.
How does Jesus bring about healing now? Through you.
Through us. The Body of Christ.
We are the agents of Jesus' healing.
That healing occurs when we change our expectations for what healing
looks like. The kind of healing that
leads to a changed state of being is done through conversation, which leads to
relationship, and relationship leads to community. And it is in community that we find
salvation, which is nothing less than God's healing grace for the entire
world. Salvation is not a solo-endeavor,
that's what it means to be a Catholic Church, a church that knows that we get
to salvation together, through praying together, sharing Sacrament together,
and working together. The healing of
God's world comes through that kind of community, and it all begins with
relationship.
Those kind of salvific, healing relationships are what NetworX Randolph County seeks to cultivate in
its efforts to alleviate poverty. Most
people in poverty in this city and county are just like that man in the
gospel--in pain and seeking healing over a long, long period of time. It isn't that they don't want it, it's that
they can't do it alone, and they need help.
They need someone to start a conversation and begin a relationship with
them that will lead to healing. As a
Christian-based organization, NetworX looks to embody the love of Jesus by
forming relationships with these folks, helping them develop skills that can
get them over the hump and make their lives better. If you come to their Poverty Awareness Day in
two weeks you'll see for yourselves the difficulties faced by those
encountering both situational and generational poverty, and you'll see how
lives can be changed just from having a conversation and forming a
relationship. It's not a quick fix. It's the kind of healing that is sustainable,
as well as sacred. NetworX knows what it
means to be agents of healing.
For more information on NetworX, visit www.facebook.com/NetworXForHopeRandolph
It starts with relationship, understanding that a quick fix
is not what changes lives. Often times
folks come by the church office seeking some sort of help, some sort of
healing. Instead of just writing a
check, I always try to have a conversation.
What's going on in this person's life?
What led them to our door? What
are they really searching for (it's usually much more than money)? Sometimes we walk around the church and talk
about what the folks at Good Shepherd are all about. Sometimes I've seen those folks out in the
congregation the following Sunday, and sometimes I don't. But it doesn't matter. What matters is that a conversation was had,
a relationship was formed, and seeds for healing were planted. We all have the opportunity to plant such
seeds, to be agents of healing. Maybe
it's through a program like NetworX. Maybe it's
by volunteering with a similar organization in your area. Or maybe it's
just by talking to someone who's going through a tough time and asking what you
can do to help. Those are the kind of seeds
that sprout into real, salvific healing.