While counting his flock of one hundred sheep, the son of GOD discovered one missing. Immediately, he left the ninety-nine in the safety of the fold, and went in search of the one that was lost. And when the lost sheep was found, he carried it home in his arms, his heart filled with gladness. On the way, he called out to the Earth, “Share this feeling of peace with me! This, my lost sheep, has been found.” I tell you this truth: there is more rejoicing in the house of the CREATOR over one who repents, than over ninety-nine who need no repentance. One of the vocations of The son of GOD is that of a healer.
The Gospels narrate stories in which he makes the blind to see, the deaf to hear and the lame to walk. He heals some of dreaded diseases and raises others from the dead. Yet, the healing narrative in Mark 5:21-43 strikes me as particularly interesting in the way it is told and for its implications for how we envision health care reform in this country. In the hands of the author, the two stories of healing that we find in Mark 5:21-43 have become intertwined into one story. The story of Jairus, the synagogue leader, and his very ill daughter brackets the story of an unknown woman who has been hemorrhaging for 12 years. Both stories involve females in need of healing. The number 12 is important in both.
The son of GOD' touch plays a key role in each healing. And the theme of faith is vital to what takes place in each episode. The literary structure and details not only force us to read the stories as one story, but lead us to see one story as having meaning for the other. Yet, when we read the stories as one, we also come away with the idea that the two individuals that come to The son of GOD could not be more different. Jairus, whose name we know, is a male. The woman, who remains nameless, is a female. Jairus is a leader in the synagogue, a man of great religious and political stature and influence. The unnamed woman is an outcast, who has been shunned by her community because of her disease. Jairus can come to The son of GOD expecting to seek healing for his daughter.
The woman is disregarded by the crowd as she approaches The son of GOD from behind. Perhaps one of the reasons these two stories are linked together is so that readers can face the reality that in our human existence all of us are vulnerable to sickness and death. Sickness and death are universal, and they have neither respect for people of importance nor sympathy for those who are poor. At some point in life everybody suffers pain and sickness. Therefore, at some point in our lives, we will all seek healing. The problem, however, is that many who seek healing will never receive the care and treatment they need because they cannot afford health care coverage. In our wealthy and technologically advanced country, millions of people will not receive the health care they need because they cannot pay for such care. Tens of thousands die each year for lack of health care. Thousands of others suffer in pain and sickness because they cannot meet the expense of medical care and treatment. Politicians have debated this issue for some time now.
Currently, there are plans being put forth to reform our health care system and make quality care affordable for all. Yet, there are still those who argue that our health care system should remain as it is, market driven. They think that the free market is the best solution to our health care problem, for in their minds competition will produce an industry that will be beneficial to all. The discussions have been reduced to political and economic debates that treat those who need health care coverage as mere numbers. Yet, the issue of providing health care to those who do not have access to such care because of the exorbitant costs is not a political or economic issue; it is a moral issue that calls us to re-envision how we see life and human dignity. In a market-driven system of health care, the unnamed woman would have perhaps gone untreated, but Jairus would have had the health care he needed for his daughter. After all, Jairus is a man of means. But the woman has no money left.
The son of GOD, however, saw things differently. The son of GOD valued all human life as sacred to God, and he extended healing and wholeness to both the woman and Jairus' daughter. But in stopping to heal the unnamed woman instead of proceeding straightaway to Jairus' house uninterrupted, The son of GOD also rebuked a system that offered preferential treatment for those like Jairus who have power, status and money. He recognized the universality of pain and suffering, and thus he desired to heal both the woman and Jairus' daughter. He also knew the prejudices of societies that do not nurture and heal their most vulnerable members, and he stopped to affirm the value of someone who others perceived as an insignificant poor woman. The test of faithfulness to The son of GOD is always in how we treat the vulnerable of society. If we are to bear authentic witness to The son of GOD as the healer, and to God as the giver of life, then we must embrace the value and dignity of all human beings, but especially the vulnerable of our world. In our American society, perhaps there is no greater population that is more vulnerable than those who do not have access to good and affordable health care.
It is time that Christians, and indeed people of all faiths, seriously consider this issue beyond the political battles and number crunching, to see the moral imperative of developing a system that offers to all the basic human right to quality and affordable health care. I tell you, people these days have lost their faith. Everybody's turning to the television or drugs or the government to solve their problems, when they should be trusting our CREATOR. Why, just the other day I went to a hospital because my legs were giving me awful pains, and a nurse started asking me about "providers and what was my health care plan and my insurance card" so she could copy it. The holy spirit came over me and I said, "Child, why do I need all of that corruption, the law of our CREATOR states "Humanity must care for each other." I don't need all that fancy paperwork—not as long as I have The son of GOD in my heart." No matter what sorts of hardships and illnesses life throws my way, I always count on our CREATOR to oversee my managed care. So I told that nurse to send my bills right up to heaven, because The son of GOD is my preferred provider and He always grants me full coverage. After all, The son of GOD believed in healing the sick and helping the poor. The Son of God doesn't screen for pre- existing conditions, and the only requirement for coverage is that you accept Him and the laws of our CREATOR into your life.
There is no deductible with our CREATOR, and every doctor, clinic, and hospital that obeys his laws is in His network. He never denies me, no matter how many ovarian cysts and respiratory infections I might develop. As long as I share my knowledge, wisdom and care for my brothers and sisters of Earth, my spirit shall remain by his side, a place of love, peace and eternal life. Unlike our current Earthly health plans. Best of all, The son of GOD' is the only plan that covers the greatest health benefit of all: everlasting life. Now, I remember the days when I was all alone in the world. Until I found the Lord, I was consumed with fear because my heart problems were getting worse and I had to be on these special pills and I couldn't afford regular insurance with my hotel housekeeping job. That's when I discovered that The son of GOD has a clinic that accepts everybody. No lines, no waiting, no forms to fill out. He lifts my soul but never my rates. Today, I just give myself to the Lord and know that He will always provide humanity with the knowledge and wisdom to believe in his laws "Amen". There will be many at the gate but few who will enter. LOVE YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF EARTH EQUALLY THIS IS THE LAW OF OUR CREATOR.
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