“Ephphatha! That Is, Be Opened!”  - Mark 7:34

September 10: A Day of Prayer   As I mentioned last week, on Monday we’ll have a full day of prayer for our parish, for our school, for our Church, and for peace.  The travelling statue of Our Lady of Fatima will be present to us beginning with a prayer service at 10:30 AM with our school students.  The students will process behind the statue and lead us in prayer.   Every hour on the hour (beginning at 1:00 PM) we will have a bi-lingual rosary.  The opening part of the prayers will be in a language reflective of the diversity of our community, and the responses in English.       1:00 PM Tagalog    2:00 PM English    3:00 PM Polish    4:00 PM Italian    5:00 PM Spanish    6:00 PM Indian Dialect   At 7:00 PM we will have a Mass.  The statue will be taken out of the church after Mass.   Our Lady always brings us to Christ.  Come and pray with us!

In today’s gospel, Jesus helps a deaf man recover his hearing in a very physical and dramatic way.  He put his fingers in his ears, and because the man’s speech was also impaired, he spit on his hand and then touched the deaf man’s tongue.
 
Then he looked to heaven and said to the man Ephphatha—a Greek transliteration of an Aramaic word that means “be opened”.  And it happened.  The deaf man could hear again and as Mark says, he “spoke plainly.” 
 
When we apply this to the spiritual life, we receive a powerful message from Jesus.  In our encounter with Jesus, the Word—the one who speaks and creates and forms us—we realize that only he can open us up.  We can find insight into our own life and experiences, especially as we go through the ups and downs we all have.  And he can also lead us to understanding the meaning of life itself.  Jesus opens us up to discovery and understanding.
 
For it to happen, however, we need to have the desire for it.  If we notice in the gospels, Jesus reaches out to those who come to him first.  He rarely acts arbitrarily (although it happens).  He usually is responding to someone’s faith or to increase their faith in him.  Faith in him is what makes all the difference.
 
Having faith allows us to be open to his word, open to his teaching, open to his witness and model of service, and open to a life with him that’s never meant to end.  Faith opens doors (and windows, too!).
 
One of the spiritual goals of our CAFE Adult Formation ministry here at St. Hubert is to offer bible studies and events rooted in the word of God.  For those who are hungry for insight and knowledge about God, the bible studies are excellent opportunities. 
 
There are also great on-line Catholic resources available that can also help us reflect.  A very solid one is Bishop Robert Barron’s Word on Fire (wordonfire.org).  We also have resources and links on our website at sainthubert.org.  However, nothing beats reading the bible and especially the gospels and words of Christ, the source of life and wisdom.
 
Whatever brings us into the word opens us up to hearing Christ.  And it’s summed up in an interesting word that captures our attention: Ephphatha!
 
         --Fr. Mike