SIN AND PRIDE WOUND US
Every temptation that comes to us is basically a drive to abandon God's
will, to put ourselves in the place of God, worshipping ourselves rather than
God.
Today's first
reading in symbolic and imaginative language presents the origin of sin in this
world. The serpent is the symbol of all temptations. The two people, who are
called Adam and Eve, are referred to simply as the man and the woman to
indicate that they are in solidarity with every other human being. In a sense
they stand for the entire human race. This story is indeed a tragic one. The
man and the woman attempted to become like God by abandoning Him and His will.
They actually wanted to put themselves in the place of God. The result was the
opposite of what they hoped for: instead of becoming divine, they fell from
divine favor and were separated from God. Rather than being satisfied with all
the gifts God had given them, they wanted more, yet their desires became unruly
and they lost much of the good they had been given.
In one sense, all
of us are like that man and that woman. Every temptation that comes to us is
basically a drive to abandon God's will, to put ourselves in the place of God,
worshipping ourselves rather than God. Jesus is the antidote to the poison of
sin. This antidote was first applied to us in the sacrament of Baptism. Jesus
reached out to us in our time of need as surely as He reached out to the deaf
and mute man in the Gospel. He freed us from sin and gave us the gift of faith,
which opened our ears to hear the Word of God. This Word of God gives the
meaning and purpose of life as well as the grace to follow and fulfill it. As
the man and woman by their sin allowed themselves to become confused regarding
what life is about, our Faith, if we are open to it, gives us a proper sense of
values. Above all, it teaches us that happiness and fulfillment are found only
in God and through following His will.
Whatever Jesus did,
He did well. He demonstrated both the beauty and goodness of God in His
actions. When Jesus heals the man in today's Gospel, He takes him aside
privately, no doubt to remove him from the embarrassment of the noisy crowd of
gawkers (Mk 7:31-37). But notice what Jesus does: He puts his fingers into the
man's ears and He touches the man's tongue with His own saliva to physically
identify with this man's infirmity and to awaken faith in him. With a word of
command, the poor man's ears are opened, his tongue is released and he speaks
plainly. What is the significance of Jesus putting His fingers in the man's
ears? Pope St. Gregory the Great from the sixth century writes: "The
Spirit is called the Finger of God. When the Lord puts His fingers into the
ears of the deaf mute, He is opening the soul of man to faith through the gifts
of the Holy Spirit." The people's response to this miracle testifies to
Jesus' great care for others: "He has done all things well." No
problem or burden is too much for Jesus' careful consideration. The Lord treats
each of us with kindness and compassion and calls us to treat one another with
that same kindness. The Holy Spirit, making His home within us, enables us to
love as Jesus loves. This truly lays out for us the proper values on our journey.