0
0
Illustration: Christ healing the deaf mute of Decapolis, by Bartholomeus Breenbergh, 1635
Pope Francis Catechesis on Evangelization
Paul VI Hall – Wednesday, 13 December 2023
Catechesis. Passion for evangelization: the apostolic zeal of the believer. 30.
Ephphatha, open Church!
Gospel Reflection: Mark (7:31-35)
At that time jesus returned from the region of Tyre, and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of the Decapolis. And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech; and they besought him to lay his hand upon him. And taking him aside from the multitude privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him, “Eph′phatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.
“Do I want to be Jesus’ witness, or am I content to be his disciple?”
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today we conclude the cycle dedicated to apostolic zeal, in which we have been inspired by the Word of God to help cultivate a passion for the proclamation of the Gospel.
And this concerns every Christian.
Let us remember that in Baptism the celebrant, touching the ears and lips of the baptized, says “May the Lord Jesus, who made the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak, grant that you may quickly hear his word, and to profess your faith“. And we have just heard the miracle of Jesus.
The Evangelist Mark goes on to describe where it happened: “Towards the Sea of Galilee…” (Mk 7:31). What do these areas have in common? They are predominantly inhabited by pagans.
They were not areas inhabited by Jews, but mainly by pagans.
The disciples went out with Jesus, who was able to open his ears and his mouth, that is, the phenomenon of the mutism of deafness, which in the Bible is also metaphorical and denotes closure to God’s calls. There is physical deafness, but in the Bible what is deaf to the Word of God is mute and does not communicaate the Word of God.
Another sign is also significant: the Gospel reports the decisive word of Jesus in Aramaic, Ephphatha, which means “open yourself”, that your ears be opened, that your tongue be opened, and it is an invitation addressed not so much to the deaf and dumb, who could not hear him, but precisely to the disciples of that time and of every age.
We too, who have received the ephphata of the Spirit in Baptism, are called to open ourselves. “Open yourselves”, Jesus says to every believer and to his Church. Open yourself because the message of the Gospel needs you to be witnessed to and proclaimed!
And this also makes us think of the attitude of a Christian. The Christian must be open to the Word of God and to the service of others. Closed Christians always end up badly, because they are not Christians, they are ideologues, ideologues of closure.
A Christian must be open to the proclamation of the Word, to welcoming his brothers and sisters. And for this reason, this ephphatha, this “opening up”, is an invitation to all of us to open up.
At the end of the Gospels, too, Jesus gives us his missionary desire: go further, go and shepherd, go and preach the Gospel.
Brothers and sisters, let us all feel called, as baptized persons, to bear witness to Jesus and to proclaim him. And let us, as a Church, ask for the grace to know how to carry out a pastoral and missionary conversion. On the shores of the Sea of Galilee, the Lord asked Peter if he loved him and then asked him to feed his sheep (cf. vv. 15-17).
Let us also ask ourselves, let each one of us ask him or herself these questions:
Do I really love the Lord, to the point of wanting to proclaim him?
Do I want to be his witness, or am I content to be his disciple?
Do I take to heart the people I meet, bring them to Jesus in prayer?
Do I want to do something so that the joy of the Gospel, which has transformed my life, will make their lives more beautiful?
Let’s reflect on these questions and let’s move forward with our witness.
