There is a poem that was written by Myra Brooks Welch in 1921 titled “The Touch of the Master’s Hand" which tells the story of the auctioning of an old, dusty violin that is about to be sold as the last item at an auction for a pittance. The auctioneer thought it scarcely worth to waste much time on the old violin, but he held it up with a smile; “What am I bidden, good folks,” he cried, who’ll start the bidding for me? A dollar, a dollar; then two! Only two? Two dollars, and who’ll make it three? Three dollars, once; three dollars twice; going for three…”
The violin was about to be sold for just a mere $3 when from the room, far back, a gray-bearded man came forward and picked up the bow; then wiping the dust from the old violin, and tightening the loose strings, he played a melody, pure and sweet as caroling angel sings.The music ceased, and the auctioneer with a voice that was quiet and low, said; “What am I bid for this old violin?” And he held it up with the bow, “A thousand dollars, and who’ll make it two? Two thousand! And who’ll make it three? Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice, and going and gone,” said he. The audience cheered, but some of them cried, “We just don’t understand. What changed its worth?” Swift came the reply: “The touch of the masters hand, " transformed the dusty old violin into a precious instrument? The same “touch of the Master’s hand” continues to transform our lives today. By God’s touch, we become His instruments to accomplish the marvelous works by bringing healing described in today’s Gospel.
All readings of today give us two challenges: 1) Ask God to extend His miraculous touch to help open our spiritually blind eyes, deaf ears, and free our mute tongue. 2) And share in Jesus’ healing ministry by lending to Him our eyes, ears, tongues, and hearts.
In the Gospel passage we are told that the people brought a deaf and dumb man to Jesus to be cured . It seemed that the people already believed in what Jesus could do; they expressed their faith by coming to Jesus not to see if he could cure the man but for him to lay his hand on him.
There are two things worth noting in the drama of Jesus healing that man. The man was healed because the people brought him to Jesus. We have to go to Jesus with our problems. We cannot stay where we are. We have to go to Jesus for our problems to be resolved and healed. Jesus is always there for us. When we are alone, Jesus is our friend waiting for us to approach him. When we are in darkness, Jesus is our light waiting to enlighten us. When we are in despair Jesus is the truth waiting to give us hope. When we are suffering, Jesus is our divine physician waiting to heal us and raise us up.
The second thing we notice is that Jesus took the man away from the crowd. Why? In all the gospel accounts there are instances everywhere of the crowd. The crowd is often unpredictable; they could shout “Hosanna” now and “Crucify him” later. The crowd can be arrogant to someone who has a purpose like Bartimaeus; they can be an obstacle to healing and salvation like in the cases of the woman with the issue of blood and Zacchaeus. The crowd can make or mar, the crowd can build and destroy.
The crowd here stands as a platform of distraction and that was why it was necessary for our Lord to take the man away from the crowd. Of course in the crowd, it would be difficult to hear very well. The crowd effect could block the ear and make speech ineffective. If we read that passage very well, it say that Jesus: 1) took him aside, 2) away from the multitude 3) privately; hence a threefold seclusion. In life, it is difficult to be effective within the crowd. The crowd could cause various degrees of harm. Often Jesus withdrew from the crowd to pray, the transfiguration is a typical instance of withdrawal from the crowd.
Likewise, we too need to be with Jesus alone sometimes away from the crowd every day and this is what happens when we spend time with Jesus alone away from the crowd; we are transformed. He “touches our ears to receive his word, and our mouth to proclaim his faith, to the praise and glory of God.” He enlightens our darkness, changes our despair to hope. Jesus changes sunset into sunrise.
Jesus is waiting for us to go away from the crowd to spend time with him. When Jesus said on the cross, “I thirst,” he was not just dehydrated, but also telling us of His longing for us to go away every day to spend time with him. How often do we recourse to prayer at home, in office, at work?
In our relationship with God, we often pay deaf ears to God’s commandments. We often fail to proclaim our faith at needful times. The question before each and everyone one of us this Sunday as we hold our ears and touch our mouth is: “Am I deaf and dumb to God and His words?” Most of us hear only the things that takes us miles away from God and would remain deaf to the message of Christ; in few words we select what we want to hear. The same thing is applicable to what we say. Often we consciously avoid proclaiming God; not saying the truth and giving good counsel to others. We really need to allow our ears and mouths to be evangelized as our Lord ritually did to the man who was dumb and deaf. The decision to hear and speak in God’s way is for us to make. May the word of God touch and transform our ears and mouth.
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