“We have never seen anything like this”
When Jesus had cured the paralytic man, completely both soul and body, everyone was in awe. Most of the people seeing the miracle take place knew that God was at least working through this man from Nazareth. However, the Scribes tried to conclude a different reason as to why and how Jesus was able to cure this man. In today’s society, we see many people try and disprove or shrug off miracles as fantasies. However, they are still real to this day.
Why does it matter if Jesus healed and forgave the sins of this man? It is a big deal because we have to put ourselves in that place 2000 years ago. For the Pharisees and the scribes who were already suspicious of Jesus, saw Him heal people, which at that time they believed could happen through demonic spells or other black magic. “Because of certain of his acts – expelling demons, forgiving sins, healing on the Sabbath day…-some ill-intentioned persons suspected Jesus of demonic possession. [1]” [2]
Why did the scribes say Jesus was blaspheming? For Jesus to say He has the power to forgive sins means that He is God. “Jesus gave scandal above all when he identified his merciful conduct toward sinners with God’s own attitude toward them…But it was most especially by forgiving sins that Jesus placed the religious authorities of Israel on the hors of a dilemma. Were they not entitled to demand in consternation, ‘Who can forgive sins but God alone?’ [3] By forgiving sins, Jesus either is blaspheming as a man who made himself God’s equal, or is speaking the truth, and his person really does make present and reveal God’s name.” [4] We know Jesus is the Son of God by fulfilling every Messianic Prophecy, he proves His claim to of being the Son of God, through His Life, through His passion, death, and resurrection.
In this Gospel Jesus already has one strike against Him because there are people who believe that He is only able to cure because of demonic forces. When Jesus says that He can forgive sins, this is strike two. The same people that are convinced that He is curing through the power of the devil, must also believe He is possessed to equate His own power, with that of God’s power. CS Lewis said that Jesus is either a liar, a lunatic, or He is Lord. Many did believe that He was a lunatic. Many other also believed that any power He had was not His own or that of God’s, but rather of the devil.
What was the punishment of blasphemy? It was death. As St. Cyril put it, “Now they accuse Him of blasphemy, anticipating the sentence of His death: for there was a command in the Law, that whosoever blasphemed should be put to death. And this charge they laid upon Him, because He claimed for Himself the divine power of remitting sins.” There are many communities that do not believe that Jesus is God. They will say that the Father and the Son are not one. Muslims and Jehovah Witness are among some of these communities. Anytime a person says, “Prove to me from scripture that Jesus was God?”, we can respond with the question, “Why was Jesus put to death? What was His crime?” Everyone knows that the crime of Jesus was blasphemy; He said that He was God. If Jesus, Himself, said that He was God, who are we to argue.
Why didn’t the Scribes try and put Jesus to death right away? While the scribes still believed Jesus should have been put to death, they could not disregard the miracle that just took place and what they just witnessed. That being a man who just a few moments ago could not get up from a stretcher, who could not walk in the house was now standing and walking out of the house showing what Jesus had done to him. The paralytic man showed no trace of paralysis: no limp, no slowness, nothing. What an incredible sight to see.
There are those who try and rationalize everything that happens or try and give a reason to everything. While many things can be explained through science, logic, reason, intelligence, etc. there are many things of this world that cannot be explain. Who are the “scribes” of today? How can you show them that there are miracles in this world? Miracles don’t just happen everyday, but they do happen and have happened. We cannot just disregard them as anything but a coincidence or happen-stance. We must be open to miracles and to better understand things that we may have never seen before.
Do we have to believe in miracles? Yes. If we do not believe in miracles then we do not believe in the Immaculate Conception, the Incarnation, the healing of the paralytic, the feeding of the five thousand, the resurrection, and many other things of our Christian belief.
[1] Cf. Mk 2:7; Jn 5:18; Jn 7:12; 7:52; 8::59; 10:31, 33.
[2] CCC 574
[3] Mk. 2:7
[4] CCC 589