Who touched me?
Since we are talking about risk tomorrow night, I thought I would share this commentary about the woman who touched Jesus cloak in Luke Chapter 8:
"The woman was declared unclean by society. When Jesus passes by, the woman comes up behind and touches his cloak. 'If I just touch him, I will be cured' she thinks. Jesus stops in his tracks and asks 'Who touched me'? The woman is caught. She knows she is unclean, ostracized by righteous holy men. Jesus might yell at her for making him unclean too. But it's too late. She approaches Jesus in fear and trembling.
What happens next is astonishing. Jesus affirms her, loves her, and gives her back her dignity. 'Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured'. Jesus does not want to be a magician. Rather, he desires a personal relationship with every human being who ever lived. He is not some impersonal god or a healing machine. He is a human being who wants to look us in the eye, love us, and be loved by us. He wants to know us as his daughters and sons. He wants to save each one of us individually, with his own personal touch, so that we might live with him in peace forever. In light of his radical personalism, his question makes sense. In asking 'Who touched me?', he wants to know who is close to him, who wants him, who is being healed by him.
When we touch Jesus, he turns around and asks us to identify ourselves, tell our stories, and get to know him. He heals us, but he wants more. He wants our companionship, our presence, our love. The Gospel invoites us to tell him, as did the heroic woman, when we touch him, how he is healing us, and who we are. If we dare, we will not be disappointed"
Taken for "The Questions of Jesus" by John Dear.
"The woman was declared unclean by society. When Jesus passes by, the woman comes up behind and touches his cloak. 'If I just touch him, I will be cured' she thinks. Jesus stops in his tracks and asks 'Who touched me'? The woman is caught. She knows she is unclean, ostracized by righteous holy men. Jesus might yell at her for making him unclean too. But it's too late. She approaches Jesus in fear and trembling.
What happens next is astonishing. Jesus affirms her, loves her, and gives her back her dignity. 'Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured'. Jesus does not want to be a magician. Rather, he desires a personal relationship with every human being who ever lived. He is not some impersonal god or a healing machine. He is a human being who wants to look us in the eye, love us, and be loved by us. He wants to know us as his daughters and sons. He wants to save each one of us individually, with his own personal touch, so that we might live with him in peace forever. In light of his radical personalism, his question makes sense. In asking 'Who touched me?', he wants to know who is close to him, who wants him, who is being healed by him.
When we touch Jesus, he turns around and asks us to identify ourselves, tell our stories, and get to know him. He heals us, but he wants more. He wants our companionship, our presence, our love. The Gospel invoites us to tell him, as did the heroic woman, when we touch him, how he is healing us, and who we are. If we dare, we will not be disappointed"
Taken for "The Questions of Jesus" by John Dear.
posted by Professor X at
8:16 AM
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