SOCIAL LIFE WITH RELIGIOUS CONSCIOUSNESS

The gospel passage of today has two miracles that give solid teachings on the necessity of faith and liberating people from social oppression. In a time such as now where hatred and violence are shown on the basis of colour, caste, race, religion, nationality and ethnicity, the act of Jesus in these two healing miracles serve as good reflections for our attitude toward people who are outside of our familiarity circles.    

The necessity of faith

The healing of hemorrhage woman is inserted between the request of Mr. Jairus, the synagogue leader, to heal her daughter and the actual healing of Jairus’ daughter. Some people come and tell Jairus not to persist Jesus to come to his house as his daughter is dead already. Actually, it is because of his faith in Jesus that Jairus came to call Jesus. After having witnessed a miracle that happened due to faith (hemorrhage woman’s faith and healing that followed), the faith of the synagogue leader should not waver. This faith elicited miracle should strengthen the faith of Jairus on Jesus’ power. Having assured by Jesus to believe that her daughter will be saved, Jairus takes Jesus to his house.  Consequently, Jesus restores his daughter to life.

Liberation from Social Oppression

 Jesus while on His way to the house of Mr. Jairus performs a miracle. This miracle is very unique in comparison to other miracles in the entire gospels because of the silence in which this miracle takes place. The hemorrhage woman comes behind Jesus with the faith that she will be restored to health if she touches even the fringe of Jesus’ cloak (tassel – an end of head shawl that has knots and thread). The passage says that many were touching Jesus on His way (Mk 5.31). It is possible that many must have got cured from their ailments by their touch. If so, why Jesus had to give particular attention to this woman? The hemorrhage that persists long is not only a sickness but also considered to be impure and unholy. The woman of this kind were forbidden to enter temple, prayer house, associate with people… by their mere presence all that comes into contact with them considered to be impure. Now, the woman had touched Jesus, does her touch make Jesus impure?

In this scene Jesus is teaching a lesson about holiness and the wrong social conception about natural flow of blood in woman as impure. Holiness does not consist in remaining apart from impure things; rather it consists in transforming all that comes into contact as holy. The unholy woman by touching Jesus becomes a holy woman. When Jesus asked who touched His cloak, the woman came out trembling (Mk 5:33). All healing gives joy to the beneficiary, here the healing and acknowledgment of the same leads to the fear of social rejection and oppression. Jesus tells her to go in peace (Mk 5:34). It is not reconciliation from her sin; the woman was not in need of forgiveness from her sin. Her need was social identity and respect for her dignity. Jesus’ acceptance of hemorrhage woman disparages the social conception of hemorrhage woman as impure and the oppression that the society inflicts onto these women. He liberates the woman from social rejection and restores her dignity by calling her “Daughter” (Mk 5:34), and recognizing her faith. Thus, holiness consist in transforming all that comes into contact with oneself, refusal of anyone in view of preserving one’s holiness leads only to rejection, oppression and discrimination of the other.

The healing of Jairus’ daughter is also liberation from social insult. The girl’s healing was not mere physical healing, but a restoration of human dignity; for a girl to die at the age of 12 without marriage and begetting children causes shame both to girl and in greater degree to her father. The request of Jairus to Jesus was to save her! (Mk 5:23) – not heal her. Thus, the worry of father was to guard her daughter from the shame of dying fruitless. Jesus by healing his daughter released the family from social defames.

Germaneness of the Gospel in today’s Context

In the society we have many theories and practices in the name of tradition. They are the result of human experience and testimony. These traditions are good, but they have to undergo change and modification as per the signs of time. Any tradition that remains unexamined and polished would lead to some kind of oppression. In the book of Leviticus we have law to keep the woman of hemorrhage separately. That was in view of guarding the woman from man’s sexual desire. In the Old Testament, this law helped the woman to rest during these hemorrhage period and take herself well. Besides, those days there was no medical facility to heal this. In the course of time the purpose of the law was forgotten, but the law continued in practice, that led to stereotype and oppression of particular gender – female. Jesus questions this unconscious application of law. Any rigid application of law without proper reason would not produce its appropriate effect. Thus, it is not enough to know the law but one should know why a particular law or tradition is followed.

  Jesus was not only a spiritual master but also a social teacher. For him religion and social life should go hand in hand. The purpose of religion is to orient man to live a proper social life. A social life devoid of religious consciousness produces separation and distinction. Let our social life never be separated from Christian principle of loving one’s neighbour.   


 

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