20250211 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SIN AND HEALING AT LOURDES
11 February 2025, Tuesday, Our Lady of Lourdes
Isaiah 66:10–14
10 “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,
all you who love her;
rejoice with her in joy,
all you who mourn over her;
11 that you may suck and be satisfied
with her consoling breasts;
that you may drink deeply with delight
from the abundance of her glory.”
12 For thus says the Lord:
“Behold, I will extend prosperity to her like a river,
and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream;
and you shall suck, you shall be carried upon her hip,
and dandled upon her knees.
13 As one whom his mother comforts,
so I will comfort you;
you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
14 You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;
your bones shall flourish like the grass;
and it shall be known that the hand of the Lord is with his servants,
and his indignation is against his enemies.
Judith 13:18–19
18 And Uzziah said to her, “O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High God above all women on earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who created the heavens and the earth, who has guided you to strike the head of the leader of our enemies. 19 Your hope will never depart from the hearts of men, as they remember the power of God.
John 2:1–11
1 On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; 2 Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples. 3 When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “O woman, what have you to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Now six stone jars were standing there, for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the steward of the feast.” So they took it. 9 When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward of the feast called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SIN AND HEALING AT LOURDES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Isaiah 66:10-14; Judith 13: 18-19; John 2:1-11]
The story of the apparition of Our Lady at Lourdes is well known. It tells of a simple peasant girl by the name of Bernadette who saw Our Lady who revealed to her that she is the Immaculate Conception. Even if some of us might not know in detail the story of Lourdes, people from all over the world, even non-Christians, have heard of the countless miraculous healings that have taken place at Lourdes over more than a century. The reflection I wish to share today is the relationship between the Immaculate Conception and the healing miracles that have taken place in Lourdes.
We begin by noting the fact that healing miracles have the most impact on the faith of people. Healings that have taken place in Lourdes have strengthened the faith of many pilgrims, even non-Christians. This is because most of us are sick in some ways and therefore need healing, physically or psychologically, emotionally and surely spiritually. But why we are sick in the first place?
In the gospel, it is clear that one of the most important ministries of Jesus was to heal. For Jesus, healing is a way in which the Kingdom of God or the reign of God is proclaimed. God’s kingdom could be testified only through the power of God made manifest in the healing miracles. Hence, for Jesus, healing is a sign that the rule of God is being restored. It is also a way to speak about the kingdom of Satan being overthrown. Although sin is not always related to sickness as made clear by Jesus elsewhere in John’s gospel, there is certainly an intrinsic relationship at times.
We only have to consider the many miracles of Jesus in the gospel where He performed spiritual healing before physical healing. Take for instance the healing of the paralytic. He forgave the sins of the paralytic before He enabled him to walk. And after the healing of the sick man at the Pool of Bethzatha, He warned the man “Now that you are well again, be sure not to sin any more, or something worse may happen to you.” Then again, in the healing of the man born blind, the blind man put it to the Pharisees that Jesus could be the Messiah because a good man cannot perform signs like that since God only listened to men who are devout and who do His will.
From these incidents, we can draw out two implications. Firstly, sickness has much to do with our sins, although such sins might not be committed by us directly. As Jesus also said, not all sicknesses are due to sin directly. Some sicknesses are due to old age and the biological process of growing old. Nevertheless, the fact is that many of our sicknesses are due to our sins, which is the failure to do God’s will. As a result, such sins bring about our own misery. This is something that is plain for us all to see. To sin is basically the failure to love ourselves authentically by not loving God and others. Selfish and self-centred people are unhappy people. They are not at peace with themselves because they are not at peace with others. Ultimately, those of us who engage in harmful activities, such as cheating, laziness, lying, gossiping, slandering, etc. will bring about division and unhappiness wherever we are. Equally destructive are our addictions, such as excessive gambling, drinking, smoking, video gaming, or even drugs.
It is only natural that when our lives are not in order, we cannot but experience disorder within ourselves. This will affect us emotionally, psychologically and spiritually, and our relationships with others. We become grumpy, irritable and unreasonable. This will bring about more quarrels and misunderstandings, leading to strained relationships with our loved ones and colleagues, leading us to become even more sick mentally, emotionally and psychologically. Such stresses will manifest in physical illnesses, since man is an integral person made of body and spirit. When the spirit is sick, the body will suffer the consequences as well. For this reason, many doctors tell us that most of our sicknesses are psychosomatic.
The second implication flowing from this is Mary’s Immaculate Conception and the healing miracles at Lourdes. The Immaculate Conception in reality reflects the wholesomeness of Mary. She herself was integrated and healthy physically, emotionally and spiritually. This is due to the fact that she was full of grace from the moment of her conception. To speak about Mary’s Immaculate Conception is to recognize that through a singular privilege of God, Mary was conceived in such a way that she was intimately united with God right from the start. This is what we mean when we say that she is conceived without sin. In other words, to say that Mary is without sin is to speak about her personal integrity. She did not experience any disorder or concupiscence in her life. She lived a life of union with God so that she was truly at peace within herself, with others and with God. Such a kind of life of course is to do the will of God at all times.
Perhaps, for this reason, I would like to suggest, not as a theological conclusion, that if so many miracles are taking place at Lourdes today, it could be a way in which God wants to speak to us about sin and sicknesses. Mary who is without sin, Mary who is wholesome, has been chosen as an agent to bring about healing for many of us who are sick. It is a sign from God that sickness, even if it is not always the case, is due to the sins of the world, directly or indirectly. It is our interior and personal disorder in our lifestyles that have affected our bodily health as well.
The conclusion for us all who are devotees of Mary under the title of Our Lady of Lourdes must therefore bear in mind that the purpose of miraculous healings at Lourdes is to teach us to live a life without sin, to live a life of grace, a life of intimate relationship with God by doing His will. This is the only true antidote to sicknesses which are caused by our failure to live an integral life. Of course, I must qualify this by reiterating that not all sicknesses are the direct result of sin, especially for those who are suffering the ravages of old age. Still, we cannot deny the fact that much of our sicknesses are due to stress, over-eating, over-indulgence in harmful activities and a divided self.
For this reason, too, those who of us who have been healed must take heed of Jesus’ warning to the sick man who was healed at the pool of Bethzatha, not to sin again. The tragedy is that many of us are not taking lightly the real meaning of Mary’s apparition to Lourdes, or the warning of Jesus in the gospel seriously. It is not sufficient to have a special devotion to Our Lady simply because she can intercede for our healing. Such a kind of devotion is to belittle the real mission of Mary. If Mary appeared to St Bernadette, and if God allows such miracles to happen through the prayers of Mary, it is to call us all back to God again, to live a life of grace and to do His will. Only such a decision to live the gospel life will bring about a total, permanent and real healing in our lives. When we are at peace with God and in union with Him, even if we are not healed physically for reasons that only God knows, then we will be equally, if not much happier and joyful in our lives.
Let us pray that as we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, we, like Mary, will strive to conquer all sins, especially those of selfishness and anti-love; for it is by so doing that we can live a life of grace and relationship with God. In this way, the kingdom of God, the kingdom of love, peace and freedom will reign in this world, destroying the Kingdom of Satan which is the kingdom of evil and destruction.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment