Our first reading today from the prophet Isaiah has a very familiar ring to it. Isaiah, with his redeeming promises, is read regularly during the season of Advent. Isaiah is writing for the exiled Israelites. He is trying to keep their spirits up, to put new heart into them, to plant in them the hope that one day they will be returned to their own land. This return, this redemption, will manifest itself spectacularly in wounded humanity: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, the ears of the deaf unsealed, then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy." The people will definitely know when this return occurs. But the effects of this redemption, this restoration will not be confined to humanity only. It will extend to embrace the earth itself: "Water will gush in the desert, streams in the wasteland, the scorched earth will become a lake, and the parched land, springs of water." A fertile, sustaining terrain is essential to a healthy humanity. Humanity does not prosper in the parched desert for obvious reasons. It is humanity's own interest to care for Mother Earth, to give her the respect and care that a mother deserves. In the promised land, mankind and land will care for a and sustain one another. This truly is Paradise Regained.
It is very obvious that the gospel reading today is modelled very closely on the promises held out in the Book of Isaiah. In fact, when Jesus preached in his local synagogue for the first time, he used as his text the prophet Isaiah: "He has anointed me, and sent me to bring good news to the poor, to preach liberty to captives, to the blind new sight, and to let to oppressed go free." Of all the New Testament figures, Jesus identifies himself most closely with the mission of Isaiah. Mark makes this very clear in today's gospel extract: Jesus lays his hands on the man who was born deaf and dumb. Immediately, his tongue was loosened and he spoke clearly. Mark is saying to his community: look, in the person of Jesus, the promise of Isaiah is clearly fulfilled. "The ears of the deaf are unsealed and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy." But then Mark as editor inserts a most peculiar piece of information: "Jesus ordered them {the crowd} to tell no one about this but the more he insisted the more they published it." What was the point in giving the speech back to a dumb man and then telling him to shut up! Again, we see here the pitfalls of taking the scriptures in a fundamental and literal sense. With this remark Mark may be saying no more than that Jesus was not widely recognised or accepted as a saving Messiah in his own day. But through healing the deaf and dumb man, he is unmistakably signalling the fact that the place and time prophesied by Isaiah has arrived in his person.
Traditionally, the Church has addressed this Messianic healing mission in very practical ways. The poor and the deprived are singled out for special attention, as advocated in the reading of James today. We must not make distinctions between classes or indeed between nations. As you all know, there is a huge imbalance in the global distribution of wealth. Some five years ago now, this Church here was twinned with a parish called Pavon in Chone, Ecuador. The annual earnings of the average Ecuadorian is $40. This congregation here has, over the last six years, attempted in some small way to address that imbalance. .Another practical, redemptive outlet has been the missionary movement. Noel Hession, who served for three years in this parish, has been out link. Over 30,000 Euro has been sent out there over the last five years to alleviate flooding hardships. But, over the last two years, Noel Hession has been using Galway money to construct a very very fine parish centre. It is a two storied building, part of which already functions as a health centre and centre for practical education.
That parish centre will open on Sunday next and a commemorative plaque will be carried from this Mass to that parish centre in Pavon. This is only a gesture, a mere drop in the waters that will gush in the desert, streams in the wasteland..... Noel is leaving that parish next month and, thanks in no small measure to you, the desert is less of a desert now because of his presence there over the last few years. Thanks to all of you who helped him so generously during that time.
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