{"id":1891,"date":"2013-07-01T08:00:37","date_gmt":"2013-07-01T00:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jeffangiegoh.com\/?p=1891"},"modified":"2022-04-20T09:15:18","modified_gmt":"2022-04-20T01:15:18","slug":"79-from-bethlehem-to-calvary-god-lives-on-the-margins-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jeffangiegoh.com\/?p=1891","title":{"rendered":"83. From Bethlehem to Calvary: God Lives on the Margins [II]"},"content":{"rendered":"

And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn<\/span><\/strong>. [Luke 2:7<\/span>, NRSV]<\/em><\/p>\n

[<\/em>Continued from Part I<\/em>]<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0\"\"<\/a>\u00a0\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

[L]\u00a0Healing of the Leper at Capernaum, by James Tissot.. [M]\u00a0The Raising of Lazarus, by Caravaggio, 1608-09.. [R] Stained glass depicting Jesus Raising Son of Widow of Nian.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Understanding the driving force of Compassion [\u03b5\u03c3\u03c0\u03bb\u03b1\u03b3\u03c7\u03bd\u03b9\u03c3\u03b8\u03b7].<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Rather unfortunately, the original Greek term employed in the gospels – \u201cesplagchnisthe<\/em>\u201d \u2013 is rather dully translated in different versions of the English Bible as \u201ccompassion\u201d, \u201cfeeling sorry for\u201d, \u201ctook pity on\u201d, \u201chis heart went out to\u201d and so on. This is a classic case of something being inevitably lost in the translation. For esplagchnisthe<\/em> is in fact a compound word which describes a gut-wrenching feeling: such deep empathy for the sufferers as to cause one\u2019s internal organs to twist and churn, to be \u201cinternally terrorized\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

By using the word \u201cesplagchnisthe<\/em>\u201d, the evangelists meant to say that, more than just a little concerned about people who suffer, Jesus was absolutely, utterly, internally moved<\/em> by their plight.<\/span><\/p>\n

ii. Healing the sick of the multitude [Matt 14:14]<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Thus moved so deeply interiorly, Jesus, who needed quiet space to mourn the loss of John the Baptist and to commune with his Abba Father, stayed with the crowds who followed him on foot from across the lake, healing their sick and feeding the multitude through the miracle of the five loaves and two fish.<\/p>\n

iii. Healing the Leper [Mark 1:41] <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In Mark\u2019s short narrative of the cleansing of a leper [Mark 1:40-45], the leper came to Jesus beseeching him, and kneeling said to him: \u201cLord, you can heal me if you want to.\u201d Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched<\/em> the man. \u201cI want to,\u201d he said. \u201cBe clean.\u201d There was no necessity for Jesus to touch the man. Even the centurion who had a sick servant at home knew that Jesus only needed to say the word, and his servant at home would be healed. But Jesus\u2019 touch was acceptance, and sympathy by contact. Once again, a miracle followed Jesus\u2019 compassion on one severely excluded by society on account of disease.<\/span><\/p>\n

iv. The Raising of Lazarus [John 11:1-46]<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In his narrative on Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, the evangelist John employed three verbs to capture Jesus\u2019 emotion and compassion as he encountered the sorrow-stricken sisters, Mary and Martha:<\/span><\/p>\n