Conflicting beliefs

For more commentary on this week's readings, see the Reflections on the Lectionary page, which includes Sawyer's current Living by the Word column as well as past magazine and blog content. For full-text access to all articles, subscribe to the Century.

In this week’s Gospel reading, Jesus heals many sick people and casts out many demons. I’ve been thinking about healing a lot lately.

My mom has fairly severe arthritis in her hands, and I can feel it beginning in mine. My index finger won’t bend all the way anymore. I know some of the things I can do to make this better—eat better and eat the right things, exercise more to keep my blood flowing and the energy circulating more freely through my body. But as the Apostle Paul reminds us, it’s terribly hard to do the right thing.