"Simon's mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and as soon as Jesus arrived, he was told about her. He went to her, took her by the hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to wait on them." Mark 1:30-31

(Editor's Note: the following is a transcription of a sermon given on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2006. The full gospel text read was: Mark 1:40-45)

Today's story, set at Simon and Andrew's house on a Saturday afternoon after worship, is a story of, in the broadest sense, healing. I say "in the broadest sense" because for 1st century peasants, fevers were never simple but were dangerous and easily fatal. The presumption was that fevers had a cause and that cause was both personal and demonic. In these stories of Jesus' healing ministry, healing often sounds like exorcisms and so we need to use language very broadly here for 1st century people did not make fine distinctions, as we might do, between curing, healing and exorcism. That Jesus was a powerful folk healer is undeniable.

Immediately preceding this incident of healing, Jesus had freed someone from demonic possession. The news spread rapidly throughout the region and at sundown, as Sabbath was ending, people now could bring their demon possessed, their sick and suffering to Jesus for help. Large numbers came into the courtyard of Peter's house and Jesus healed them all. It likely seemed like a miracle.

And to be frank, miracles are hard for us today. How we think of these stories of miraculous healing depends, to a certain extend, on how we think of God.

For many people, God is a transcendent God. Although their image may no longer be one of an old man sitting on a rocker with a long, white beard; many people do think of God as removed from human life, dwelling in a heaven light years away. Directionally, God is "up there."

For healing to occur, requires God to transcend distance and to intervene in human life to bring about a restoration of health. Why would God bother to do that for any particular individual? Is it a reward of having the right belief or having sufficient faith? There's a qualitative aspect about it. Having belief in the right God and believing the right things about that God. For many, that means believing, in a strictly literalistic way, the words of scripture and that those who are unable to do that will not find help. But there's also a quantitative aspect – believing deeply enough as well.

Oftentimes, contemporary preachers and television evangelists claim to have the gift of healing. That is to say, they act as intermediaries between the petitioners and a distant God. But their power to heal is either enabled or constrained by the sick person's faith. You weren't cured, then it's your fault – your faith wasn't strong or deep enough or your belief was not orthodox enough.

The other paradigm is one which stresses God's immanence. God is not removed form human history, human life. Rather God is as close as the very breath we breathe. If the transcendent God is "away" and "up", the immanent God is "near" and "within." One theologian, struggling to create new language to talk about the nature of God, called God the "ground of our being." Not as poetic as "our father in heaven" but nonetheless descriptive. Healing under this paradigm is not a matter of persuading God to transcend but rather, of releasing the power of God within.

The role of a spiritual healer – rather than exercising power they have as a gift or persuading God to be merciful – is rather to encourage the sick to release those things within us that block and inhibit the power of God within to restore and heal. Now, this is just as problematic. When healing does not happen, in the first paradigm, it was because of insufficient faith or wrong belief. Under this paradigm, it is an unwillingness to "let go and let God." In either case: it's your fault.

I want to suggest a third paradigm. And that is this: rather than either/or; God is both/and. God is wholly "other." Beyond our comprehension and full understanding. God is Yahweh, El Shaddai, Jehovah, and Elohim. God is God of majesty and power and awe. A God most powerfully revealed in the psalms of David as David implores God to intervene in history and come to the aid of his people.

But God is also the God revealed in Jesus. God is companion and friend and brother. A present – not an absent – help in time of need.

That restoration of health occurs is not dependent on how we think of God – as transcendent or immanent - nor does healing come as a reward for faith or right belief.

Indeed, we can only claim what physicians themselves claim: when two people have the same disease and are treated with the same protocols and one gets well and the other does not, it is a mystery. In life, sometimes we stand in the presence of mystery. Beyond life, all will be revealed. On this side of life, there is often only mystery and the reality that sometimes when we pray for something, the answer is "no." Or perhaps the answer is "yes, but not in the way you have asked for it."

And so we are reminded of the prefect prayer during suffering. The prayer Jesus prayed in the Gethsemane Garden was that God might take the cup of suffering from his hands but in the end, not Jesus' will but God's will be done. Sometimes, the answer is "no." And for us, like Jesus, the goal, the purpose, the end of life is not to live but to enter into "new life."

And here is where language is helpful. Disease can be defined as a biomedical malfunction for which we need to seek a cure. Illness, on the other hand, is a disvalued human condition in which our social networks are ruptured and in which the meaning of life is lost. And whereas disease can result in illness, illness occurs without any disease present. For illness, we seek healing and healing sought, will always come.

Lazarus is raised and rejoins his sisters Mary and Martha. Jairus's daughter is raised and she goes to play with her friends again. The leper is cleansed and is told to go to the priest and certify the healing so that he might worship in the Temple again. The woman with the issue of blood is healed when she touches Jesus garment and she can now resume her place in the community of her family. Simon's mother-in-law is cured of fever and is strong enough to resume her place in the economy of her family; to initially fix lunch for the men but then later to resume cooking and cleaning and tending her garden. Her place is restored; her meaning renewed.

Some years ago, a gentleman named Charlie – a member of this community – was at home dying of prostate cancer. He was blessedly free from pain generally but had difficult days still. A few days before he died, I was visiting with him and bringing him the sacraments of the Church and I asked him how he was. He proceeded to tell me his symptoms and I was strangely led by the Spirit to say this: "Charlie, your doctors and your family want to know about your pain and discomforts. They want to know that they are doing the best they can by you and that you are not suffering needlessly. They want to know about your body. I'm your priest. What I want to know is: how is it with your soul?" And the old twinkle came back in his eye and a small smile played around the corners of his mouth and he said: "my soul is just fine."