“What small steps do we need to take? What little gestures can bring us to that pure moment of grace which heals and saves us?” Fr Dean reflects on today’s readings from Mass.
Readings for Monday of week 14 of Ordinary Time can be found here
Sir Thomas Edison is a well-known name for one reason. He invented the light bulb. Yet, during his early days his teachers told him that he was “too dumb to learn anything and there’s no hope for him.” He dropped out of formal education at the age of twelve, and later, he failed countless times with many inventions. He got fired from his first two jobs. He ignored all the criticisms and despite being almost penniless, he turned out to be the most successful inventor of his generation influencing motion picture cameras to the light bulb. One of his famous quotes is, “Every wrong attempt discarded, is another step forward.”
In the gospel reading, we have two desperate people. One, a ruler whose daughter has died. The other is an anonymous woman, lost among the crowd, and who has been suffering with a haemorrhage for twelve years. Their desperation, however, is coupled with faith. Despite the terrible knock backs and griefs that each each experience, they seek out Jesus. It is enough for Jesus to lay his hands on the dead daughter. It is enough for the woman simply to touch the hem of Jesus cloak. Through faith, each receives, the gift of a life transformed.
Each of us will experience some kind of setback in our life. It could be family or work related, sickness, bereavement, or grief or some kind. Perhaps at times, we may think we have nothing to offer, or that people have put us down and held us back. How do we step forward when we are burdened by struggles? “Every wrong attempt discarded, is another step forward,” said Edison. Some obstacles may seem insurmountable. All it took for the woman in the gospel was to reach out and touch the hem of Jesus’ cloak. It is such a small gesture but one which draws her into a face-to-face encounter with Jesus, which then in turn transforms her life. What small steps do we need to take? What little gestures can bring us to that pure moment of grace which heals and saves us?
Mass today is in St Dyfrig & St Samson at 630pm
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