Sermon for 21 August 2022, Trinity 10

As we approach a bank holiday it is particularly good to hear the story of the healing on the Sabbath of the woman who was crippled. We witness Jesus defying the rules of the Sabbath and heals her. He stands up for an overlooked individual and we feel that is how it should be. Damn the petty bureaucrats and hurrah for loving kindness.

But - the woman had been in pain for 18 years. It hadn’t killed her. She probably couldn’t even remember what it was like to feel well, so how would waiting a few more hours until the Sabbath was over have really hurt her? Of course, it wouldn’t.

After all, today we can only see a doctor in surgery hours unless it’s an emergency. So why is Jesus being so provocative? Indeed, in these days of rampant individualism, and the strain on the NHS, it might be argued that institutions need to regain some much-needed respect. Also, particularly since Covid, how many people do you know who are working from home? These days email, mobile phones and a global economy mean workers find themselves constantly on call. So Sabbath time is even more precious and needs to be fought for. Would Jesus, today, have got angry with the synagogue leaders or would he have berated those of us who, despite all the talk of the need for a work-life balance, cannot switch off their smart phones; and who secretly prefer the demands of the office to the needs of personal health and well-being?

Well, let’s park the Sabbath issue to one side for the moment. Because there is another reason the story appeals – it isn’t just about the triumph of the individual against the institution, it’s also the fact that she is healed. Being healthy is so important to us – in fact one might say health has become a form of idolatry.

There is a profound difference between our modern-day society and that of a pre-Enlightenment age. Life, we presume, is meant to be perfect. But as we know all too well, life is not perfect nor will it ever be.

And the huge difference between us and earlier generations is that we are obsessed with trying to remove anxiety. Our forebears, on the other hand, looked for wisdom to help them face and cope with the hardships of life.

Our contemporary culture expects babies to be born healthy and to survive childhood illnesses; we expect safety precautions to be in place and when anything goes wrong; we don’t seek wisdom but instead look for someone to sue. We cannot bear anything which smacks of suffering. Doctors are now criticised for prescribing too many anti-depressants because people have become so intolerant of normal grief and sadness. And we see this fantasy pervading family life. So often we hear parents saying that all they want is for their children to be happy. But what is happiness? Is happiness to be found by helping children avoid everything that hurts and frustrates? Or is it about building up their inner resources so that when they face hardships and inevitable suffering, they will not just survive but grow in wisdom and understanding from the experience?

So back to the gospel story. Is it about Jesus standing up for the individual against the institution? Is it about Jesus encouraging us to believe that a cure can be found whether we use the elixir of prayer or the elixir of scientific progress? Or is it something else?

When Jesus took on the synagogue leaders he was on his way to the cross. He was on his way to die for all of us. His own personal health and safety, his own human rights were nothing to him. When he healed the woman of her suffering he was walking towards his own suffering. So I don’t think Jesus can be said to be making a statement about either the rights of the individual or the right to be healthy.

Instead, let us look at the woman. How she responded. When she was healed we are told she immediately began to praise God. She rejoiced! She gloried in all the pleasure it was to feel alive and to feel free. This was what she was thanking God for – not simply saying ‘thank you God for making me better’ – but thank God for all that is wonderful in life.

The sabbath is God’s gift of free-time, as Isaiah says, the ‘delight’ that God made life for. Jesus was reminding everyone of that essential meaning of Sabbath – delight.

If we work six days of the week then God has decreed, spend just one day reminding ourselves what life was meant to be about. Doing things differently, seeing things from a different perspective. I wish you a happy bank holiday. May it bring delight and some rest!

Reference: Elisabeth Morse, All Saint’s Fulham