13th Week of Ordinary Time, Thursday, 7-4-24, Year B
Readings: 1st Reading: Am 7:10-17; Psalm: 19:8,9,10,11; Gospel: Mt 9:1-8
Independence Day – USA
Theme: Faith Leads to Forgiveness, Forgiveness leads to Healing
We often hear Jesus saying to someone who has come to Him faith for help, “Your faith has saved you, go in peace, your sins are forgiven.”
It is worth noting that before our sins are forgiven, we must first have faith in Jesus and His teaching of the will of His Father. Only when we have faith and a contrite heart and ask with humility are our sins forgiven (a spiritual miracle). Once our sins are forgiven, we can be healed of our physical infirmities.
This concept is brought to light in our Gospel reading today according to Matthew. We hear of two miracles being performed by Jesus in His hometown for the paralytic who was brought to Him. First, Jesus performs the miracle of spiritual healing by forgiving the paralytic’s sins. Second, He performs the miracle of physical healing by curing the man’s body, allowing him to walk again. Jesus does this not only for the paralytic man but for those who are watching and questioning who Jesus really is. His proof of healing the paralytic also healed those who questioned Jesus’ authority through God the Father.
These two miracles were made effective for the paralytic because of the tremendous faith he had in who Jesus was and the power He contained. Not only did the paralytic have faith, but the very men who brought him to Jesus in the first place had the same faith.
In the first reading, we can see what happens when we do not have sincere, contrite faith in God (The Holy Trinity). Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, is tired of listening to the warnings and prophecies from the prophet Amos. He doesn’t have the right faith in God, nor fear of Him, and prefers to continue to live a life of sinful behavior contrary to God’s covenants. Amaziah’s lack of faith creates greater spiritual and physical harm, even to the point of his death and that of his family.
This is a reminder of the power of faith, both in doing good when we have true faith, or bad when we have little or no faith.
I want you to think about today’s scripture message of faith and healing the next time you go to Confession. If you have true faith with humility and a contrite heart, Jesus, through the priest, will perform a spiritual miracle of healing by forgiving your sins. We must continue to have that same faith after receiving absolution that we are actually forgiven. We must believe that God has already forgotten all those sins so that we can move forward with a clean heart.
Having a clean heart and joyful disposition, we open up for ourselves the possibility of the miracle of physical healing through God’s grace, if it be His holy will.
With great faith in God, our forefathers believed that they could do the unthinkable and become one independent nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Through that faith, the United States of America was born and continues to this day. We must never forget the very foundation for which our nation was built, that of faith in God which provided spiritual and physical strength to become the great nation we are today.
On this day, with faith, as we celebrate our independence, may God continue to bless us and protect us. May He make his face shine upon us and give us peace. Amen.
Saint James Catholic Church 