Healing the mind Week 5: Tuesday Reading Mark 5.1-4 They came to the other side of the lake, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. Reflection We might well prefer to interpret the man “with an unclean spirit” as being mentally and emotionally ill, rather than possessed. Today’s reading describes someone “out of control” who has to be locked away from the community. He is a danger to himself and to others. Curiously, Jesus is the only one who treats the man as a human being. He speaks to him. Addresses him. And, as we will see later this week, asks his name. Seeing another as a human being is important, especially when considering the treatment of those deemed mentally and emotionally unwell. In the UK, the scandalous fact is that individuals from UKME backgrounds are five times more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act than white people. Watch Notice how mental health is understood and treated in our world. ...and pray for deeper compassion towards those who suffer mentally and emotionally. Copyright © The Archbishops’ Council 2024.
#WatchAndPray Lent reflections - Week 5: Monday Week 5: Healing We turn to the theme of healing which features strongly in Black Spiritual traditions. Healing is complex and multi-faceted – affecting mind and body, the physical and the spiritual, the individual and the community. This week we will focus on an important sequence of events from Mark’s Gospel to help us explore this deep truth. Prayer for the Week O Holy One, you are the one who makes us whole again. We present to you our bodies, our minds, our spirits, our cultures and our communities. Heal us and send us out to tell others all that you have done for us. Amen. Healing the spirit Week 5: Monday Reading Mark 4.35-5.2 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?' And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’ They came to the other side of the lake, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. Reflection We will be focussing for most of this week on the story of Jesus’ encounters in the country of the Gerasenes. It’s a story that has many layers of meaning. On the face of it, though, it is an account of Jesus’ healing a man “with an unclean spirit”. The Bible consistently points to the reality of a spiritual world beyond human understanding that affects the material. In today’s passage the disciples witness Jesus’ power over the physical world: “even the wind and the sea obey him.” Jesus’ next miracle – the exorcism of the man’s demons – will show he is also Lord of the spiritual realm. As we have seen, Black Spirituality emphasises the oneness of all things – the physical and the spiritual, the individual and the community. Jesus is able to heal the man’s spirit – but the healing he offers goes far deeper and wider. Watch What comes to mind when you think of the spiritual realm? Where do these images come from? ...and pray for deeper attention to God's divine power, holiness, healing and love. Copyright © The Archbishops’ Council 2024.
Jeremiah in a cistern Week 4: Friday Reading Jeremiah 38.1-13 Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people, Thus says the Lord, Those who stay in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but those who go out to the Chaldeans shall live; they shall have their lives as a prize of war, and live. Thus says the Lord, This city shall surely be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon and be taken. Then the officials said to the king, ‘This man ought to be put to death, because he is discouraging the soldiers who are left in this city, and all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking the welfare of this people, but their harm.’ King Zedekiah said, ‘Here he is; he is in your hands; for the king is powerless against you.’ So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. Now there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud. Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern. The king happened to be sitting at the Benjamin Gate, So Ebed-melech left the king’s house and spoke to the king, ‘My lord king, these men have acted wickedly in all they did to the prophet Jeremiah by throwing him into the cistern to die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.’ Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘Take three men with you from here, and pull the prophet Jeremiah up from the cistern before he dies.’ So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe of the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, ‘Just put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.’ Jeremiah did so. Then they drew Jeremiah up by the ropes and pulled him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard. Reflection Jeremiah is the great prophet who experiences the exile into Babylon, and the complexity of life under colonial occupation. He has a word from God that is difficult, and he is faithful in proclaiming it. Those who dislike what he says puts him in a cistern, a place of no escape, to starve and die. Jeremiah – “the weeping prophet” – is made to be quiet through the plotting of his own people. When the truth you speak is not heard, and attempts are made to silence you, it is heart-breaking. This has been the experience of Black people in racist and xenophobic societies. The silencing often leads to an inner rage. It is not only the mouth that is silenced, but one’s identity, creativity and beauty. Jeremiah’s ordeal offers an image of hope: he continued to speak God’s truth, and time proved his words to be true. Watch Recall moments when you felt profoundly unheard whilst speaking your truth. ...and pray for courage to speak the truth in a world too often fashioned by lies. Copyright © The Archbishops’ Council 2024.
Jonah in the whale's belly Week 4: Thursday Reading Jonah 1.1-4,7-17 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying, ‘Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.’ But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord. But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up. The sailors said to one another, ‘Come, let us cast lots, so that we may know on whose account this calamity has come upon us.’ So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Then they said to him, ‘Tell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?’ ‘I am a Hebrew,’ he replied. ‘I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.’ Then the men were even more afraid, and said to him, ‘What is this that you have done!’ For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them so. Then they said to him, ‘What shall we do to you, that the sea may quieten down for us?’ For the sea was growing more and more tempestuous. He said to them, ‘Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quieten down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.’ Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to bring the ship back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them. Then they cried out to the Lord, ‘Please, O Lord, we pray, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life. Do not make us guilty of innocent blood; for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.’ So they picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord even more, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. But the Lord provided a large fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Reflection The Book for Jonah is a very interesting part of the Bible. It tells the intriguing story of a prophet who runs from God only to find himself in the belly of a whale, a quiet place. While Jonah’s three-day retreat inside the “great fish” is referred to in Matthew Chapter 12 by Jesus to explain his own coming death, burial and resurrection, it is Jonah’s anger that is perhaps the most striking feature of the book as a whole. Jonah is sent to the chief city of a colonising power to declare judgement. He holds on to this long-awaited judgement, but at the last moment God grants mercy! Jonah’s anger then turns toward God. How dare God grant mercy when justice is needed? This is too often the dilemma facing peoples who have experienced oppression and persecution. Mercy and justice are hard to balance. Jonah remains trapped in his anger – unwilling to accept that mercy has a place alongside justice. Watch When have you felt most angry against God? ...and pray for a deeper faith to trust God's silence in the face of injustice. Copyright © The Archbishops’ Council 2024.
