In the Gospel of today, Jesus feels pity and compassion for the crowd whom the Evangelist describes as being like sheep without a shepherd (Matt. 9:36-10:8). Jesus knows that the sheep are susceptible to a lot of risks and dangers due to lack of shepherds. Many of them can go astray, while others can be wounded or even starved to death. Jesus, therefore, selects the 12 disciples to help in the work of shepherding the sheep and healing the wounded among them. In what seems like terms of reference to the newly appointed shepherds, Jesus says: “Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. …Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons.”
Wounded World
Recently, I started re-reading one of my favorite books entitled “Word for a Wounded World,” written by Rev. Fr. Maurice Emelu, the founder of the Gratia Vobis Ministries. In the book, Fr Maurice recognizes that there are many people in our world who are sick and wounded, and we are called to reach out to them and bring healing to them, just as Jesus charges the 12 in the Gospel of today. Many people are wounded and hurting. Through this book, he brings some comforting words to our world wounded by so many realities.
Sources of our wounds
Fr. Maurice takes care to explain different sources of the wounds and hurts we experience in our wounded world today. In his words:
At times, wounds come from those who may have misjudged or mistreated us. A parent, a guardian, a leader who treated us badly when we were children, and perhaps molested us; a spouse who abused us (or still abuses us); friends we trusted who, like Brutus, stabbed the dagger of betrayal in our backs; a pastor from our church who caused scandal and wounded our precious faith which we cherished from childhood. Our wounds can come from government bodies, which do not merely block our way to God, but unleash a wave of injustice, corruption, and bad blood in the polity. They could come from a neighbor, who not only repudiates our faith, but revels in antagonizing everything we hold dear; or from a religious fanatic ….
Help and Healing
Are you wounded spiritually, emotionally, psychologically, socially, and even physically? You can definitely find help and healing in Jesus through His Church, the Word of God, and the Sacraments. You can also be a source of healing to another person, through your prayers, charity, and words of encouragement. We are all wounded in one way or the other, but just like Jesus, we can in turn be a “wounded-healer” to others. In your daily prayers, think about those who are hurting and who are wounded, and ask God to send them help and healing.
