OXYGEN

04 Mar – Memorial for St. Casimir

Casimir (1458-1484) was a 15th century Polish prince who became Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1471. He was third in line for the throne.

Hungarian nobles had prevailed upon Casimir’s father to send his 15-year-old son to be their king. Casimir obeyed, taking the crown, but refusing to exercise power. His army was outnumbered, and his troops deserted because they were not paid. Casimir returned home, and was a conscientious objector from that time on.

He returned to prayer and study, maintained his decision to remain celibate even under pressure to marry the emperor’s daughter. He reigned briefly as king during his father’s absence.

He lived a highly disciplined, even severe life, sleeping on the ground, spending a great part of the night in prayer, and dedicating himself to lifelong celibacy. He had a great devotion to Mary, supported the poor, and lived a virtuous life amid the dissolute court.

- Patron Saint Index
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Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12

The angel brought me to the entrance of the Temple, where a stream came out from under the Temple threshold and flowed eastwards, since the Temple faced east. The water flowed from under the right side of the Temple, south of the altar. He took me out by the north gate and led me right round outside as far as the outer east gate where the water flowed out on the right-hand side. The man went to the east holding his measuring line and measured off a thousand cubits; then he made me wade across the stream; the water reached my knees. He measured off another thousand and made me wade across again; the water reached my waist. He measured off another thousand; it was now a river which I could not cross; the stream had swollen and was now deep water, a river impossible to cross. He then said, “Do you see, son of man?” He took me further, then brought me back to the bank of the river. When I got back, there were many trees on each bank of the river. He said, “This water flows east down to the Arabah and to the sea; and flowing into the sea it makes its waters wholesome. Wherever the river flows, all living creatures teeming in it will live. Fish will be very plentiful, for wherever the water goes it brings health, and life teems wherever the river flows. Along with the river, on either bank, will grow every kind of fruit tree with leaves that never wither and fruit that never fails; they will bear new fruit every month, because this water comes from the sanctuary. And their fruit will be good to eat and the leaves medicinal.
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John 5:1-3, 5-16

There was a Jewish festival, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now at the Sheep Pool in Jerusalem there is a building, called Bethzatha in Hebrew, consisting o five porticos; and under these were crowds of sick people – blind, lame, paralysed. One man there had an illness which had lasted thirty-eight years, and when Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had been in this condition for a long time, he said, “Do you want to be well again?” “Sir,” replied the sick man. “I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is disturbed; and while I am still on the way, someone else gets there before me.” Jesus said, “Get up, pick up your sleeping-mat and walk.” The man was cured at once, and he picked up his mat and walked away.

Now that day happened to be the sabbath, so the Jews said to the man who had been cured, “It is the sabbath; you are not allowed to carry your sleeping-mat.” He replied, “But the man who cured me told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’” They asked, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Pick up your mat and walk’?” The man had no idea who it was since Jesus had disappeared into the crowd that filled the place. After a while Jesus met him in the Temple and said, “Now you are well again, be sure not to sin any more, or something worse may happen to you.” The man went back and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had cured him. It was because he did things like this on the sabbath that the Jews began to persecute Jesus.
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Wherever the water goes, it brings health.

In the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, Lourdes water flows from a spring that was discovered by St. Bernadette Soubirous in 1858. It is believed that this water contains miraculous healing powers which some, having bathed in it, have received healing for their ailments. In 1858 and 1859, this water was thoroughly analyzed by independent chemists who found that it does not have any power in itself to cure anyone, and has no special scientific or medicinal properties.

In today’s gospel reading, we see a similar pool of water in Jerusalem where people have received healing. Like the Lourdes water, this water from this pool had no special medicinal properties. The man who had been plagued with his ailment for 38 years discovered this when he was cured by Jesus. He had come to realize that the water from the pool was not that which cured illnesses, but it was Jesus, the source of life, that cured him.

Very often we attribute the wrong sources for the cures that we receive. While it is true that modern medicine has the power to reduce pain and remove cancerous tumours, it still falls short of God’s power to restore us to health. Modern medicine can help remove some of the viruses and bacteria that are in our bodies, but only God, through His careful design of the human body, can create antibodies to win the battle. Let us pause for a moment to reflect on the wonders of God, especially in His creation of our own body.

(Today’s reflection by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: Dear Lord, we ask you for the grace and wisdom to take better care of our own bodies. Amen.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for good health, and peace of mind and spirit.

Upcoming Readings:
Wed, 05 Mar – Isaiah 49:8-15; John 5:17-30
Thu, 06 Mar – Exodus 32:7-14; John 5:31-47
Fri, 07 Mar – Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22; John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30; Memorial for Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, martyrs
Sat, 08 Mar – Jeremiah 1:18-20; John 7:40-53
Sun, 09 Mar – Ezekiel 37:12-14; Romans 8:8-11; John 11:1-45; Fifth Sunday of Lent
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