Aurelio Porfiri
We have previously wanted to reflect on how the Church has abdicated its task of dealing with the body, as well as souls. In reality, off late, it seems that she has little grip on souls, while she deals with the body only following the dominant vulgate filled with ecology and sociology. Yet in Matthew, we read: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, heal the lepers, cast out demons.” These are Jesus’ words, not just random phrases. But one gets the impression that one no longer believes in this intersection between body and soul and that these two are intimately connected.
We have already mentioned Aldo Natale Terrin and his beautiful essay ‘Health and Salvation’. It contains a phenomenological reflection on the therapeutic task of religions in which he denounces this abandonment by the Church in its important role. In the essay, Terrin identifies this holistic vision of man up to the threshold of the Renaissance, “until in reality, every religious and humanistic philosophy had to give way to the arrogance of the technocrats of the human body and in general to the positivism of scientific research which immediately demonstrated its anti-religious root to the extent that it defended itself as an ‘objective’ and ‘inductive’ knowledge”. Later in the essay, Aldo Natale Terrin states: “The Christian religion must confess that it has perhaps given too much credit to the physical sciences and biomedical science and to have allied itself slowly but decisively with a mechanistic and deterministic conception of existence.” What the scholar denounced is in fact under the eyes of all. I do not know if you have also noticed, during this pandemic, how it almost seems that religion had nothing important to say or do to bring relief to the many affected souls.
Yet at the popular level, it cannot be denied that this idea of the union between body and spirit seems alive and present. We think of the millions of people who visit the sanctuaries, Lourdes in the first place, with the hope of being healed. Or think of the many charismatic groups, Catholic and Protestant, whose ceremonies often culminate in healing rites. Yet the Church herself is well aware of this element, so much so that she considers the miraculous recovery from some disease to be a certain proof of being a saint. In short, all this exists but it seems almost put aside. Attention shifts to sociological and anthropological issues but abdicates an important function, which is to heal souls, not only the body.
In the passage from the Gospel of Mark read during Mass (ordinary form) on Sunday 27 June, we have this clear affirmation of the healer Jesus: “At that time, Jesus having passed by boat to the other shore, a large crowd gathered around him and he stood by the sea. And one of the leaders of the synagogue, named Jairus, came and, as he saw him, threw himself at his feet and begged him with insistence: ‘My little daughter is dying: come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be saved and live.’ He went with him. A large crowd followed him and huddled around him”.
Already at the beginning itself, we have a clear perception of the tumult of people who invoked Jesus, a sign of his power. “Now a woman, who had been bleeding for twelve years and had suffered much at the hands of many doctors, spending all her possessions without any advantage, rather getting worse, heard of Jesus, came into the crowd and from behind touched his cloak. In fact, she said: “If I can even touch his clothes, I will be saved.” And immediately the flow of blood stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of the disease. And immediately Jesus, realizing the strength that had come out of him, turned to the crowd saying: “Who touched my garments?” His disciples said to him: “You see the crowd gathering around you and you say, who touched me?” He looked around to see who had done this. And the woman, frightened and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, she came, threw herself in front of him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her: “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be healed of your illness.” Here, a woman who had spent all her money on doctors turns to Jesus.
This happens many times even today, in the shrines and in the healing prayers that we have already mentioned. But does the Church still believe in all this or do they think that salvation will come to us from ecological conversion?
The Gospel of Mark continues dramatically: “He was still speaking when from the house of the head of the synagogue they came to say: “Your daughter is dead. Why are you still disturbing the Master?” But Jesus, hearing what they were saying, said to the ruler of the synagogue: “Do not be afraid, only have faith!” And he did not allow anyone to follow him, except Peter, James and John, brother of James. They came to the house of the synagogue leader and he saw a bustle and people crying and screaming loudly. When he entered, he said to them: “Why are you agitated and crying? The child is not dead, but she is sleeping.” And they mocked him. But he chased them all out, took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went into where the child was. He took the girl’s hand and said to her: “Talità kum”, which means: “Girl, I say to you: get up!” And immediately the girl got up and walked; she was in fact twelve years old. They were amazed. And she insistently advised them that no one should find out and told them to give her something to eat”. Look at what is interesting: the request for healing was so great that Jesus takes care not to spread the word around about what he had done, otherwise he would have been overwhelmed with requests. Moreover, after such miraculous healing, he does not utter spiritualizing thoughts but is very concrete, asking to let her eat.
It strikes me to note that even in hospitals that denounce their Christian origin (in Rome many hospitals are called by the names of saints, St. Camillus, St. John, St. Andrew and so on) there fully equipped with almost all medical and nursing staff who have such a mechanistic view of life. And when the spiritual meaning of our existence fails, the improbable salvation is left to science, which however cannot save itself.
(Christ Healing a Bleeding Woman, as depicted in the Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter)
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