TOUCH EVEN THE FRINGE…

1 Kings 8:1-7,9-13

1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the people of Israel, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
2 And all the men of Israel assembled to King Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 And they brought up the ark of the LORD, the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them up. 5 And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had assembled before him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered.6 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles.

9 There was nothing in the ark except the two tables of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the people of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
10 And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the LORD, 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.12 Then Solomon said, “The LORD has set the sun in the heavens, but has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.13 I have built thee an exalted house, a place for thee to dwell in for ever.”

Mark 6:53-56

53 And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret, and moored to the shore. 54 And when they got out of the boat, immediately the people recognized him, 55 and ran about the whole neighborhood and began to bring sick people on their pallets to any place where they heard he was.
56 And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or country, they laid the sick in the market places, and besought him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched it were made well.  
MEDITATION

THE FIRST READING: The elders were gathered to move the Ark and place it before the assembly for King Solomon to begin the sacrificial feastival following its transfer to the most holy place, the inner sanctuary. Upon the priests exit from the sanctuary, the house of the Lord is filled by a cloud which manifested the presence of the Lord. The Hebrew temple liturgy included the offering and use of incense (Ex 30:34-38) which also signaled God’s presense. 

The period of Solomon’s reign is said to be analogous to the peoples exodus from Egypt—restoring the peoples desire to worship their God and a departure from an evil dictator who held them in bondage. We notice the use of material images or artifacts (vv 6,7) that formed part of the liturgical expression of the peoples faith and mode of worship.

THE GOSPEL READING: As soon as Jesus put His foot upon the soil of Gennesaret, He is overwhelmed by the sick who  recognized Him and desired to at least touch His garment in an attempt to bring about their healing! Herein we notice the mysterious healing that came about when a sacred object- the garment of Christ, is touched. 

This phenomenon is also witnessed to in the book of Acts, when the people took garments used by Paul, to bring healing to the sick. Acts 19:11-12 In the old testament Moses gathered the bones of Joseph (Exo 13:19) when he departed from Egypt. We notice herein the Tradition of revering sacred objects also known as relics of God’s holy elect, that has the power to effect healing when venerated or adored. We who are afflicted with pain and suffering are called to cloak ourselves with righteousness as we besought and venerate Christ who is present to us in His dwelling place, the Tabernacle; with our prayers and supplications! 

LET US PRAY: Psalms 132:6-10

6 Lo, we heard of it in Ephrathah, we found it in the fields of Jaar.
7 “Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool!”
8 Arise, O LORD, and go to thy resting place, thou and the ark of thy might.
9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness, and let thy saints shout for joy.10 For thy servant David’s sake do not turn away the face of thy anointed one.

Commentary. Henry R SYLVESTER 
Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some weekly readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days.