Friday of the 5th Week of Ordinary Time
At that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the way. Now Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and the two of them were alone in the field. Ahijah took the new garment that was on him, and tore it in twelve pieces. He said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces; for the Lord, the God of Israel, says, 'Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you ( but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David's sake and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel ),
So Israel rebelled against David's house to this day.
I am the Lord, your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. But my people didn't listen to my voice. Israel desired none of me.
So I let them go after the stubbornness of their hearts, that they might walk in their own counsels. Oh that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!
I would soon subdue their enemies, and turn my hand against their adversaries. The haters of the Lord would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever.
Again he departed from the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and came to the sea of Galilee through the middle of the region of Decapolis. They brought to him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech. They begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside from the multitude privately and put his fingers into his ears; and he spat and touched his tongue. Looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him, "Ephphatha!"that is, "Be opened!" Immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was released, and he spoke clearly. He commanded them that they should tell no one, but the more he commanded them, so much the more widely they proclaimed it. They were astonished beyond measure, saying, "He has done all things well. He makes even the deaf hear and the mute speak!"
What strikes me most about these readings is how they reveal God's persistent desire to communicate with us, even when we struggle to listen or respond.
In the first reading, we witness the dramatic moment when the prophet Ahijah tears his new garment into twelve pieces—a powerful visual prophecy about the coming division of Israel's kingdom. In ancient times, tearing clothing was a profound gesture of grief or decisive action. Here, it becomes God's way of communicating through symbol and action when words alone weren't enough. The psalm that follows captures the heartbreak in God's voice: "My people didn't listen to my voice." It's the lament of a parent whose children have stopped hearing them.
Then we encounter Jesus with the deaf man who couldn't speak clearly. What I find beautiful here is how Jesus doesn't just heal from a distance—he gets personal. He puts his fingers in the man's ears, touches his tongue, looks up to heaven, and sighs deeply before saying "Ephphatha!"—be opened! It's intimate, tactile, completely present.
This makes me think about how often we might be like that deaf man, struggling to hear God's voice in our daily lives, or like the Israelites, distracted by our own plans and desires. Maybe we're going through the motions at work, in our relationships, or even in our prayer, but not really listening with open hearts.
The beautiful news is that Jesus is still saying "Ephphatha!" to us—be opened! He wants to touch those areas where we've become deaf to love, hope, or truth. He meets us in our ordinary Wednesday afternoons and weekend conversations, whispering that same word of opening.
Where might you need to hear "be opened" today? What would change if you truly believed God is trying to communicate with you right now?