There is tremendous power in a touch, many
people will attest to that, hence the ritual of hand-shaking and the
significance of body massage. The Eastern rituals of bowing or clasped hands in
greeting are a spiritual form of the hand-shake, conveying connection between
two people.
In the Epistle Reading for this
Sunday – The Fifth Sunday after Pentecost – Paul urges the Corinthian
believers to be intentional “not only to do something but even to desire to do
something...now finish doing it” (2 Corinthians 8:1-15). In other words,
match desire with action.
Paul was encouraging the Corinthians to
make a physical – monetary – contribution to help the poor church in Jerusalem Jerusalem
There is an equally powerful demonstration
of the significance of a touch in the Gospel Reading from Mark 5:21-43. By touching Jesus' garment, the woman suffering
from unending hemorrhages found healing. Similarly, Jesus touched the dead
synagogue leader's daughter by the hand and she came to life.
Think of the joy (a sign of healing) on
the faces of those in a nursing home or hospital when they are visited and
touched. The healing is on both the visitor and the visited; in fact many who
do such visits believe they get healed even more than those they visit.
Be intentional about touching someone and
being touched this week-end.
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