[stephenkhoo]

DO YOU WANT TO BE WELL AGAIN?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [EZEKIEL 47:1-9,12; PS 46,2-3,5-6,8-9; JOHN 5:1-16 ]

In the gospel, there was this man who was paralyzed for thirty-eight years lying at the side of the pool hoping that he could get into the pool when the water was disturbed so that he could find healing. Yet it is significant that when the Lord saw him, the question He asked was, “Do you want to be well again?” The man did not respond to the Lord. Instead, he was more focused on wanting to get into the pool so that he could walk again. “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is disturbed; and while I am still on the way, someone else gets there before me.” And this is true also for most of us. Many of us are more concerned about our physical health and financial well-being than our spiritual health and personal relationships with God and our fellowmen. We think that spiritual and affective needs are secondary when they are critical in living a purposeful and meaningful life.

That was why the Lord asked the paralyzed man whether he wanted to be well again. For Jesus, to be well extends beyond the ability to walk again. It means living an authentic life of integrity and holiness. Hence, after healing the paralyzed man, we are told: “the man was cured at once, and he picked up his mat and walked away.” He did not seem to be transformed in his heart or interiorly. He was healed physically but perhaps not spiritually. He did not show gratitude to the Lord or even ask for His name. It was only later when he was questioned why he was carrying the sleeping mat on a Sabbath that he found it necessary to lay the blame on Jesus who healed him of his illness and that it was because of His instructions that he was carrying the sleeping mat. In other words, he wanted to exonerate himself from breaking the Sabbath Law. So when he found Jesus, instead of protecting Him, he went to report Him to the authorities. “The man went back and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had cured him. It was because he did things like this on the Sabbath that the Jews began to persecute Jesus.”

Consequently, when the Lord met him in the Temple, He said, “Now you are well again, be sure not to sin anymore, or something worse may happen to you.” Truly, more unfortunate than physical illness is the sickness of the heart and of the soul. Many who are physically sick or immobile are much happier and at peace within themselves than those who are supposedly healthy and able to move about. Happiness in life is not whether we are able to take care of ourselves, or how healthy we are, but whether our hearts are at peace and whether our minds are pure, thinking positively of others, and that we have a beautiful relationship with God and our neighbours. So long as we have a clear conscience and a heart of love and compassion, we can be happy in whatever state we are in and in whatever situation we are found.

Indeed, the scripture readings today urges us to prepare ourselves to be renewed in the cleansing waters of the sacrament of baptism at Easter so that we can be well again, not just physically but spiritually. The pool is a symbol of the baptism font. The water in the pool reminds us of the sacrament of baptism. St John Chrysostom taught that whereas the pool of Bethzatha cured physical ailments, Baptism cures those of the soul. Furthermore, at Bethzatha only one person was cured whereas in the pool of baptism, many are cured of their illnesses and most of all, their sins. We read in the first reading that the flowing water that exits from the threshold of the temple and flowed east brought life to both plants and fishes. “Wherever the river flows, all living creatures teeming in it will live. Fish will be very plentiful, for wherever the water goes it brings health, and life teems wherever the river flows. Along with the river, on either bank, will grow every kind of fruit tree with leaves that never wither and fruit that never fails; they will bear new fruit every month, because this water comes from the sanctuary. And their fruit will be good to eat and the leaves medicinal.” God’s healing grace comes to us through the waters of baptism.

Indeed, the sacrament of baptism brings about new life through the forgiveness of sins which is the deepest form of healing. With forgiveness from God, we are able to forgive those who hurt us and then forgive ourselves for the wrongs we have done to others and to ourselves. Forgiveness is the deepest form of healing that we need before any other forms of healing could take place.

Thus, the season of Lent prepares the Elects for baptism at Easter. That the healing of the paralyzed man took place on a Jewish festival indicates that it happened either at Passover or Pentecost, both of which are related to the Christian celebration of the Paschal Mystery, the Passion, death, and resurrection of our Lord. The forty days of praying and fasting help the Elects commit themselves to Christ at baptism. It reminds us of the story of Noah when the entire human race was deep in sin. God allowed the flood to purify the people. The season of Lent similarly is an occasion for sinners to be washed clean of their sins and be saved. Water, too, is not just related to baptism but to Pentecost because flowing water is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we live in truth and holiness.

Hence, we must take our growth in holiness seriously. It is not enough to seek baptism but to be baptized means that we intend to grow in holiness. St John Paul wrote, “It implies the conviction that, since Baptism is a true entry into the holiness of God through incorporation into Christ and the indwelling of his Spirit, it would be a contradiction to settle for a life of mediocrity, marked by a minimalist ethic and a shallow religiosity. To ask catechumens: ‘Do you wish to receive Baptism?’ means at the same time to ask them: ‘Do you wish to become holy?’ It means to set before them the radical nature of the Sermon on the Mount: “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). (Novo Milenio Ineunte, 31)

Indeed, we must avoid falling into the same mistake as the paralyzed man who resigned himself to his paralyzed state. He was lamenting to himself and engaging in self-pity when he said, “I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is disturbed; and while I am still on the way, someone else gets there before me.” This is the case of many Catholics and people who are living in misery and pain. They are not making efforts to get out of their miserable state of life. They are bitter with their current lifestyle that is meaningless, but they are not making efforts to come out of it. They wallow in self-pity. Instead of being creative and taking risks to make the changes, they are just sitting by the pool waiting for a miracle to happen. Hence, Jesus told him in no uncertain terms, “Get up, pick up your sleeping-mat and walk.” In other words, stop living in self-pity. Get up, pick up your crosses and start walking.

Some of us fall into the state of mediocrity because of routine. That was the case of the religious leaders. They were not happy that Jesus healed on the Sabbath. They were simply contented to obey the laws meticulously, slavishly and blindly. They did not know how to apply the laws to their lives creatively as Jesus did when He saw the greater need to heal the paralyzed man than to keep the Sabbath Law which forbade work. When we become slaves to tradition and laws, we practise them out of routine rather than out of love and compassion. For Jesus, He healed out of compassion for their suffering, even at the cost of being misunderstood and even persecuted for doing good.

By growing in holiness, our souls become healthier and better, as does our physical health. A sound mind produces a sound body. Jesus in the gospel reminds us, that “every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Mt 7:12-20) When we ask for physical and material things, worse things could happen to us because we use our health and resources to do evil rather than to do good. We cause harm to ourselves and to others when we have a bad and guilty conscience. We are distressed, anxious and restless. That is why we need to take care of our soul and our heart as much as we take care of our physical body. This is what holiness is all about.