Be Opened!

I didn't preach today, but here's the homily I gave on the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) in 2012.

          In “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” Ali Baba stumbles across a band of thieves as they prepare to unload their stolen treasure in a hidden cave.  The captain of the thieves approaches a rock wall and utters these strange words, “Open Sesame!”  And immediately, a wide doorway appears in the face of the rock.[1]  Secret words open the entrance to that cave in “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.”  But in today’s Gospel there’s no secret at all.  Jesus shows us plain and simple that our healing rests in him and our willingness to “Be Opened!”

          In our Gospel passage Jesus opens the ears and loosens the tongue of a man suffering from deafness and a speech impediment.  Now, in the Gospels we usually find Jesus’ healing miracles being accomplished through words.  But this miracle is different.  It’s very physical.  “As God incarnate, [Jesus] shows [God’s] love in an incarnational way – physically, through intimacy and touch, through sound and spoken word.”[2]  With your indulgence, I’d like to talk about each of these elements.

          First, Jesus puts his fingers in the man’s ears.  Now, as you might imagine, the Meyer family often engages in deep theological discussions at the dinner table.  Well, when I mentioned to my daughters that I was preaching on this Gospel passage, we pondered together whether this is the first recorded instance of a Wet Willy.  Father Robert Baron, however, has a much more lofty explanation.  He tells us that by inserting his fingers in the man’s ears, Jesus establishes, so to speak, “an electric current running from the Father, through the Son, into the suffering man.”[3]  This is exactly what Jesus came to do for us.  Jesus is the conduit between heaven and earth, humanity and divinity.  Jesus plugs us into God, his boundless grace and his healing power.

          Next, Jesus spits and touches the man’s tongue.  OK, so it sounds pretty gross to us, but to the people of the first century – Gentiles and Jews alike – it was a powerful gesture.  Spittle was understood to have healing properties:[4]  you’ll recall that Jesus healed the man born blind by mixing his spit with dirt and applying the mud to the man’s eyes.  (John 9:6)  In fact, Jesus’ contemporaries would have understood this act as an intimate, loving gesture – perhaps somewhat like a mother who dabs a little of her spit on a tissue to clean her child’s face.  By this act, Jesus is crossing boundaries to establish an intimate relationship with the suffering man.

          Jesus next looks up to the heavens.  Looking heavenward is a sign of prayer.  Jesus knows that “the heavens are permanently opened; God is available; the Holy Spirit is always descending with love.”[5]  But he also knows that we need everything that heaven has to offer.  So he opens himself to the divine loving presence – and he does that with a sigh.

          Now in our Gospel, we hear that Jesus “groaned.”  The difference in wording is a matter of translation of the word estanaxen in the original Greek text.  Estanaxen means to sigh deeply or to groan.  So what’s Jesus doing here?  He’s letting go.  He’s emptying himself so that he can be united with the man’s anguish and thereby the perfect conduit of God’s healing love. 

          Then, finally, Jesus speaks.  He says, Ephphatha (Be Opened)!  Throughout history we find incantations, spells, healings and exorcisms that rely on foreign words or gibberish to elicit magical powers – words like Abracadabra, Presto Changeo, or even Open Sesame.  But that’s not what’s happening here.  Ephphatha may sound strange to us, but Mark is quoting Jesus in the language he spoke on the streets – Aramaic.  Anyone around would know exactly what Jesus said and what he meant.  And Mark makes sure that his audience understands by giving a translation:  “Be Opened!”   Crystal clear, this word “serves as a word of power that frees the man from his infirmity rather than as a mysterious incantation.”[6]  There are no magic words.  “Be Opened” is not addressed to the ears.  It is a command to the heart to be open to the love of God that it is experiencing by being united to Jesus.”[7]

          Now, in my view a Gospel that portrays a very physical healing deserves a very physical response.  So let’s do what Jesus did (we’ll skip sticking our fingers in each other’s ears and mouths, though).  If you’re able to do so comfortably, please stand for a moment.  Together, let’s look to the heavens, sigh and say, “Ephphatha!”  That feels pretty good, doesn’t it?  You might even say – it’s healing.  You may be seated for the remaining 40 minutes of my homily.  How about trying that as a spiritual exercise at the beginning of each day?  If we allow ourselves to be opened by God, our ears will be unplugged, our tongues will be loosened, and we will experience the Kingdom of God right here on earth. 

          You know, Ali Baba’s brother Kasim was captured and killed inside that cave because he couldn’t remember the magic words to get out.[8]  But Jesus couldn’t have made it easier for us to remember.  If we accept that we need the healing power of Jesus we’ll soon find out that “our God does not deal with our infirmities from a distance.”[9]  Through Jesus, the divine physician comes intimately close to us.  Our healing rests in him.  All we have to do is look to the heavens, sigh and – Be Opened!

Readings:  Isaiah 35: 4-7; James 2:1-5; Mark 7:31-37

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[1] “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” Arabian Nights (Norwalk, Easton Press, 1981) at 150. 

[2] Lectionary Guide, at 218.

[3] Robert Baron, Word on Fire (New York, The Crossroad Publishing Company, 2008) at 221.

[4] John R. Donahue, S.J., Daniel Harrington, S.J., Sacra Pagina:  The Gospel of Mark (Collegeville, Liturgical Press, 2002) at 240.

[5] John Shea, Eating with the Bridegroom:  The Spiritual Wisdom of the Gospels for Christian Preachers and Teachers, Mark Year B (Collegeville, Liturgical Press, 2005) at 222.

[6] Sacra Pagina, at 240.

[7] Eating with the Bridegroom, at 222.

[8] Arabian Nights, at 152.

[9] Father Paul J. Fasano