A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 5:17-26
One day as Jesus was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there, and the power of the Lord was with him for healing. And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; they were trying to bring him in and set him in his presence. But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles into the middle in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, "As for you, your sins are forgiven."
Then the scribes and Pharisees began to ask themselves, "Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who but God alone can forgive sins?" Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them in reply, "What are you thinking in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven’, or to say, 'Rise and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"– he said to the one who was paralyzed, "I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home." He stood up immediately before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God.
Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, "We have seen incredible things today."
REFLECTION:
I rejoice in the goodness and determination of the men bringing the paralytic man to the presence of Jesus. They could have said it was ‘impossible’ to help the man reach out to Christ, and really nobody would have criticized them. But these men’s true love for their neighbor drove them to improvise an extreme strategy and squeezed him through the roof!
How commendable, how compassionate, how determined, and how wise these men were! They had the wisdom to know that if they did the possible (but difficult and laborious) work for the paralytic man, Jesus would do the truly ‘impossible’ part.
Dearest Jesus, I pray that you give me the grace to have the same approach to my neighbor’s suffering as the men from today’s Gospel. I beg you to give me the compassion, desire, drive, and determination to do my part in bringing as many as you wish to your Holy presence, so that they can receive healing and salvation from You, the true love of our hearts.
Sacred heart of Jesus, I trust in you!
Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.
