Tuesday, March 17 : John Tauler

Our Lord came to the pool of Bethezda. There he found a man who had been ill for thirty-eight years and said to him: “Do you want to be well?”… Children, take good note that this sick man had been there for a very long time, for years. This man was destined to serve God’s glory, not death (Jn 11,4). Oh, if only we would try hard to understand, in a spirit of real patience, the profound teaching contained in the fact that this sick man had waited thirty-eight years for God to heal him and tell him to walk! This is spoken to people who, having scarcely begun to live a slightly retired life and not seeing themselves at once produce the great results they expected, believe it all to be wasted and complain about God as though he were treating them unjustly. How few there are who possess the noble virtue of being able to abandon and surrender themselves, who accept themselves for what they are and bear their infirmities, handicaps and temptations until the Lord himself cures them… What power and self-control would be granted to such a one! To him would it truly be said: “Stand up! You have no right to be lying there any more; you should be setting out victoriously from every bondage, be unbound and walk in all freedom. You will carry your bed – that is to say, whatever was formerly carrying you, you must now take up and carry in power and strength.” Whoever the Lord himself delivers would be delivered indeed; he would walk rejoicing and, after waiting so long, would win a wonderful freedom of which they are deprived who imagine they can deliver themselves or break their bonds before the time.
Roman Catholic Ordinary Calendar – rosary,team