Be Open

Hello Friends,
In today’s Gospel, friends of a deaf man bring the man to Jesus and beg our Lord to cure him of his deafness. The Gospel writer used the original Aramaic word Ephphatha, which we are told means “Be open.” As Bible scholars note, this was one of the few times that the original Aramaic was preserved in the Gospel of Mark. Perhaps the Gospel writer deliberately chose to preserve the Aramaic word Ephphatha, “Be open,” to describe how Jesus cured this deaf man.


I can imagine Jesus tenderly guiding the deaf man away for a personal interaction. Away from the crowd, Jesus is entirely focused on the deaf man. The touching of the ears and tongue gives us the sense that Jesus is not holding back in this compassionate encounter. He performs this miracle, and the man’s ears are opened to hear the word of God directly from the mouth of God when Jesus says, “Be open.” Scenes like this fill me with awe at what our Lord has done for us. He became man incarnate and touched his creation. He lived among his creation, cared for, and taught us how to live. I am encouraged to be open to hearing what God is telling me today. In the Gospel of John, Jesus told us that he would not leave us as orphans but that he would send the Holy Spirit; “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit helps us gain an understanding of the Word of God according to our disposition.


In our lives today, it may not be an auditory nerve problem that prevents us from hearing God, but perhaps it's the noise of the world that distracts us. Contemplative prayer can help us be disposed to gain understanding. In contemplative prayer, we tune out the noise. St. Teresa wrote, “Contemplative prayer is nothing else than a close sharing of friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us.” We learn in the Catechism that contemplative prayer is hearing the Word of God (CCC, 2716). I don’t find it easy to do, but when I am intentional about creating a quiet space for contemplative prayer, I find it to be fruitful. Disconnecting from all media is a must. My phone can be a source of distraction, so I power it down or intentionally leave it behind when I make time to be alone with our Lord. God is always seeking us out, but there is much in our modern
world that can be an obstacle to being open to hearing the Holy Spirit.

Our task is to remove those obstacles and tune our sensitivity to be open to
hearing the Word of God.

Siempre Adelante

​Manuel Leon
Business Manager 

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