14th Sunday of Ordinary time

Mark 6:1-6. “And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands upon a few sick people and healed them. And he marvelled because of their unbelief.”

Last Sunday we heard about 2 very wonderful miracles: The first miracle was a haemorrhaging lady so full of faith touched Our Lord’s garments and was healed; the second miracle was Jairus’ daughter was dead who was unable to turn to Christ but by the faith of her father is raised to life. Today’s Gospel contrasts last week's Gospel as we are now presented with the lack of faith. “He could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands upon a few sick people and healed them. And he marvelled because of their unbelief.”

Throughout the gospels the miracles of Our Lord are nearly always accompanied by a reference to faith: "Your faith has healed you, go in peace”; “Do not fear. Have faith.”; “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed…”’; “Your faith has made you whole”; “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” The list goes on.

Story There is a made up story about a man who could walk a tightrope across the Grand Canyon. And big crowds would go and see this great marvel. [Imagine yourself there in the crowd going to see it]

Now he would start the show by first going over to the other side and come back walking steadily over the tightrope. The wind would wobble him here and there, but he would manage.

Then he would address the crowd saying: “I can walk across the Grand Canyon upon this tightrope blindfolded! Does anyone believe me?” The crowd would shout out, “Yeah you can do it! We believe in you!” The man would then blindfold himself and proceed to walk across and back again over the Grand Canyon. Even though the wind would cause him to wobble a bit, he managed nonetheless.

The man then addressed the crowds again saying, “I can cross the Canyon walking upon this tightrope backwards! Does anyone think I can do it? Do you believe in me?” And the crowds would shout back, “Yes, yes! We believe you can do it.” And the man would proceed to go and walk backward over the Grand Canyon on the tightrope, there and back again, wobbling here and there as the wind blew.

Now the man addressed the crowd a third time, “I can walk over the Grand Canyon, walking upon this tightrope blindfolded with a person upon my back! Does anyone believe that I can do it?” And the crowds would shout back with all excitement, “Yes, yes! You can do it! We believe you can do it!.” Then the man called out to the crowd, “So who will volunteer to climb onto my back?” And the crowd was silent.

(Charles Blondin, a famous tightrope walker, is known for his daring feats, such as pushing a wheelbarrow across Niagara Falls while blindfolded. He would often ask the crowd if they believed he could carry a person across in the wheelbarrow, but when he asked for a volunteer, none stepped forward)

Would you volunteer to be the person on this showman’s back?

Our faith in Christ should not be a mere accessory. It should not be a superficial, skin deep faith. It should be an essential part of us, a defining factor. Does your faith influence your life, your day to day decisions, your choice of career, your life’s defining decisions, your friendships, etc? If we believe in God should we not spend time with Him everyday, praying to Him? Should we not be thanking Him for all the things He has done for us? Should we not think of honouring Him by making a sacrifice every Friday as we remember how He gave His life for us? And should we not put Sanctifying the Lord’s day as our first priority on Sundays as He Commanded? Do we prepare ourselves to receive God in the Most Holy Sacrament with prayer and fasting?

Do we truly believe, trust and follow Jesus? Remember, He could not work miracles in His home town because they lacked faith. They did not come to Him, they did not care to hear Him, they did not care to follow Him because He was the carpenter, “the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon.” Cradle Catholics can fall into this way of thinking. We pray and nothing happens, we go to Mass and nothing happens, we sin and nothing happens, we receive holy communion in mortal sin and nothing happens, we go to confession and nothing happens, there is no magic there is no wonder, just life. We might question whether God really exists.

What influences our lives more? What are we seeking? Are we chasing after money, power or renown? Are we chasing after our passions and desires trying to satisfy our appetites with the pleasures and treasures of the world? Or are we chasing after Jesus? I guess another question could be, are we too lazy to chase after anything?

Maybe we lack faith because we believe that God doesn’t hear us. Maybe we believe that He is far away and doesn’t care for us. Maybe we believe that we are too wicked and so He doesn’t love us. Maybe we are afraid that He will drop us because the tightrope is terribly thin. They are all reasonable reasons but if we don’t make an act of faith, reach out to Jesus like the haemorrhaging woman, or pray and beg Jesus to save our loved ones like Jairus did for his daughter, how can we expect for God to work a miracle in our lives?

“And he could do no mighty work there. And he marvelled because of their unbelief.”

I want cake, I want cookies, I want, I want, I want… We might feel that does doesn’t love us because He doesn’t give me what I want. Just like good parents often don’t give us what we want, instead they give us what we need and what is good for us.