Facing Mortality with Faith: Lessons from Hezekiah
July 19, 2024 - Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Isaiah 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8
Today's excerpt from Isaiah invites us to reflect on the power of sincere prayer, God's compassion, and the miracle of healing. Hezekiah, like many of us, struggled to accept the prospect of his life ending earlier than he had hoped. He pleaded his case before the Lord, highlighting his devotion, and then "wept bitterly" (Isaiah 38:3). God heard his cry, promised to add 15 years to his life, and then healed him.
An unexpected and life-threatening illness in the prime years of our life is always a tragedy. It puts into question everything we have been doing and living for. Like Hezekiah, we weep bitterly and do everything possible to find a doctor and a treatment that will heal us. We turn to God in prayer, asking, "Why me, Lord?" and, like Hezekiah, we assert that we have done nothing to deserve such a tragedy. What is God's response? Some of us get healed, while others must reconcile themselves to the fact that they are about to die. After all, even with the additional 15 years, which would pass quickly, Hezekiah would again confront his mortality.
In 2002, in the middle of the night, in the mountains of East Timor, a young priest was battling the parasites of cerebral malaria. Enjoying his ministry, the thought of death had not crossed his mind. Yet, with a fever over 40 degrees and his body paralyzed from his toe to his neck, he was convinced that he would be gone in a few minutes. He was totally unprepared for such an eventuality. Panic-stricken, he cried, "Jesus, save me; Jesus, save me." He did not want to die. And he did not die. Jesus indeed saved him, but this experience marked him for the rest of his life.
"Thus says the LORD: Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you shall not recover" (Isaiah 38:1). Sooner or later, a similar message will be directed to each one of us. Therefore, it is better to begin putting our house in order ahead of time rather than waiting until the last moment. After his healing, Hezekiah composed a beautiful prayer that highlights his anguish but also his trust in the Lord (see Isaiah 38:9-20). He continued his religious reforms under the guidance of Isaiah and undertook projects to secure the defense of Jerusalem. He is included among those few kings of the line of David who "did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done" (2 Kings 18:3).
Most of us live without an awareness of human mortality. Perhaps it is part of our defense mechanism. However, an awareness of our mortality and that of those around us can have a beneficial impact on our lives. Father Jan Twardowski, a Polish poet, in his poem "Let's Hasten," invites us to acts of charity with a powerful opening line: "Let's hasten to love people; they pass away so quickly." To those of us who never think of death, he offers this warning: "Don't be sure you have the time because certainty is uncertain."
I wish all of you to live, like Moses, up to 120 years of age, but let it be a life of meaning, filled with deeds of charity and service for our loved ones and those around us.