Every Sunday, Bishop Edward Malesic writes a Scripture reflection for the faithful. Follow the bishop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus comes to the home of Simon and Andrew and he finds that Simon’s mother-in-law “lay sick with a fever.”
Winter is often the time of increased illness. It’s flu season. Colds are more common. We still have COVID-19 with us, and a few of my friends have come down with that in the last several months. Thankfully, all have quickly recovered.
Any serious illness knocks us off our feet. It makes us withdrawal to a dark place. When we are really sick, every noise makes us cringe. The smell of food sickens us. All we want is to be left alone.
That is how Peter’s mother-in-law felt — and maybe even worse.
Jesus grasped her by the hand, healed her, and helped her up.
And what was the first thing that she did: “She waited on them.” That's the sign that she had recovered. She went out of herself to those around her.
The story of the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law is more than simply about her physical healing. It is about making everything about her whole again. It describes a mini resurrection experience.
As with her, Jesus comes to us to raise up our hearts and minds to God. He comes to give us a taste of the life to come. He comes to heal us of everything that keeps us from God and from loving one another. He comes to save us from a living death and he promises to give us life after death.
We have been redeemed, saved, healed.
But, someone can ask, “How can I know that I have been healed?” The Gospel gives us an answer. “The fever left her and she waited on them.” She became a servant — a person who took care of others.
A person who has been grasped by Jesus and lifted up is a person who lives to serve. It could be by serving through prayer, through alms, or through acts of kindness. A person who has been healed by the touch of Jesus wants to do God’s will as a mom, dad, priest, religious sister, or by simply living out the single life serving others with faith. All of these vocations are about serving someone else. A person who has been healed gets out of bed in the morning and spends the day asking, "Where can I help you, Lord?"
Have a blessed week everyone.