10th September, 2006

TAKING OUR MEDICINE

There was a well-known international snooker player, at his peak in the 70’s and 80’s, who, because he suffered from a particular disorder of his nervous system, reputedly had lager prescribed for him by his doctor. I don’t know whether he went to the pub or the chemist to have his prescription fulfilled, but I know he was the envy of all the drinking people with whom I was acquainted. How they wished they could reply to all the suggestions that “you really need to cut down on your drinking” with “I really would love to, but I can’t – my doctor has prescribed it for me!” Before you rush off to check on whether you would qualify for such a prescription, the rather sad end to the story is that the player concerned has since died at a relatively young age.

The reason why the above came into my mind this week, was a little bit of ingenuity that a member of the parish shared with me. Like many of our parishioners, his job entails a certain amount of travelling, and, like for the rest of us, the recent changes in airline security have been a bit of a pain in the neck. While we might appreciate that such measures may be necessary, we don’t particularly have to like them, especially when we know we’re no threat to anybody.

Anyway, before embarking on this particularly journey, which involved a number of connecting flights, he went to his doctor and had him issue him with a prescription for his toiletries. I doubt that my doctor would do it, but his did, possibly as much out of curiosity as anything else. Would it work? My friend gets as far as the security check. “You can’t take toothpaste on board, sir!” “But here’s the prescription! The rules state that if it’s prescribed, I can take it on board!” I’m sure the loop-hole has been plugged by now, so don’t bother trying it – but my friend managed to get it on board a couple of flights before eventually having to hand it over.

Travelling was much simpler in Jesus’ day, and security generally entailed making sure you travelled in groups whenever possible, and sticking to the highways. And, of course, as He travelled by road He was likely to meet all kinds of people, as, for instance, the deaf man in today’s story, a man who obviously had good friends, who indicated to him that the prescription for an end to his deafness was to allow Jesus to lay His hand on him. And Jesus filled the prescription in an unusual way – fingers in his ears, spittle on his tongue, and a sigh towards the heavens.