Healing tears
19/09/16 04:46
There is a story that our people have been telling for thousands of years. The formal version of the story is found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 7, verses 36-50. The basic story is that Jesus goes to the house of a Pharisee for dinner and while he is there a woman, came with an alabaster jar of ointment and stood behind Jesus, She wet his feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair and kissed his feet and anointed them. The Pharisee, begins to question Jesus’ moral authority, saying that surely he must know that this woman is a sinner. Jesus answers him with a parable. He also reminds the pharisee that when Jesus came to his house, the pharisee didn’t wash his feet. The woman however washed his feet with her tears.
Today’s blog, however, isn’t a sermon on this text. There are plenty of sermons out there. I just want to think for a moment about the process of washing someone’s feet with one’s tears.
A brief bit of background is in order. In Roman times, tear catchers were commonly used by those who were grieving. Mourners filled glass bottles with their tears. Some of the flasks were designed to be worn on a chain around one’s neck. the bottles were often ornamental and elaborately decorated. It was believed that the amount of tears collected in the bottles was a way of measuring respect for the deceased. The tear bottles had seals that allowed for a slower rate of evaporation than if the tears were left out in an open container. Nonetheless, they did evaporate. When the bottle was empty and the tears were gone, the period of mourning was over.
The custom of using tear bottles was revived in Britain during the Victorian era. The bottles used at that time were often decorated with silver and pewter.
Back to Jesus’ time and our story. The tears that were used to wash Jesus feet, might literally been the tears of grief of a mourning woman. We don’t know for sure, the Biblical record doesn’t provide precise details, but that is definitely one possibility. It seems unlikely that the woman could have produced sufficient moisture to wash Jesus feet by simply crying at the moment. The woman was turning her grief and mourning into a blessing by using her tears to comfort and sooth Jesus’ tired feet at the end of along day.
Now for a bit of science (just a little bit): Human bodies produce at least three different types of tears, each with a unique chemical signature. Basal tears are produced nearly constantly and keep the cornea lubricated and clear of dust. Some of the chemicals in basal tears also help to fight against bacterial infection as a part of the immune system. A healthy person produces somewhere between .75 and 1.1 grams of tears in a 24-hour period. Hmm. . . I don’t think the woman was washing Jesus’ feet with basal tears. It would have taken years to generate sufficient moisture.
The second type of tears are reflex tears. Reflex tears are produced when the eye is irritated by foreign particles or irritants. Those are the tears you cry when you cut onions or are exposed to tear gas or pepper spray. Bright lights can also cause this type of tears to be produced. They attempt to wash the foreign substance out of the eye and are produced in much larger quantities than basal tears. Perhaps the woman washing Jesus’ feet had an onion hidden somewhere to help her produce her tears.
The third type of tears are emotional tears, also known as psychic tears. We weep when we experience strong emotions such as emotional stress, anger, suffering, mourning or physical pain. Those tears are also produced by positive emotions such as laughter and pleasure. These tears are quite different in chemical composition than basal or reflex tears. they have more protein-based hormones. Production of emotional tears is sparked by the limbic system, specifically by the hypothalamus. These tears also contain Leu-enkephalin, a natural painkiller. Crying literally eases one’s suffering.
Generations of our people told the story of the woman washing Jesus’ feet with her tears without knowing the details of the chemical composition of tears. Even without this knowledge, however, they understood that it was an amazing event - a story worth telling over and over again. Something wonderful happened in that exchange and we have treasured the story for so many generations.
There have been several occasions in my life, usually associated with grief and loss, when it has felt like I have been cleansed by the process of crying. I make a pretty good effort at not crying in public, though I do think I’m becoming a bit more of a sentimental fool as I age. I try to be a stable leader and a steady speaker when I am leading worship. But there are things that can trigger my emotions and spark my tears. A week ago I looked up while preaching and my eye caught the eyes of a young man who has been away for a while and had returned home for a brief visit. I remember when I held him in my arms and baptized him. It hardly seems like there could have been enough years for him to become an adult who is living a long ways from home. Even though the experience of looking at him had little to do with the subject of the sermon, there was a catch in my throat as I spoke.
Along with the stories we have told, our people have reminded ourselves in each generation that the process of grieving is a healthy and necessary process. We ought not fear our tears, but rather embrace them as signs of healing and growth. We need not fear the times of mourning, but rather embrace them as avenues for new life.
So let us lay aside our fear of weeping. It’s just good Biblical interpretation. And it is good science as well.
Today’s blog, however, isn’t a sermon on this text. There are plenty of sermons out there. I just want to think for a moment about the process of washing someone’s feet with one’s tears.
A brief bit of background is in order. In Roman times, tear catchers were commonly used by those who were grieving. Mourners filled glass bottles with their tears. Some of the flasks were designed to be worn on a chain around one’s neck. the bottles were often ornamental and elaborately decorated. It was believed that the amount of tears collected in the bottles was a way of measuring respect for the deceased. The tear bottles had seals that allowed for a slower rate of evaporation than if the tears were left out in an open container. Nonetheless, they did evaporate. When the bottle was empty and the tears were gone, the period of mourning was over.
The custom of using tear bottles was revived in Britain during the Victorian era. The bottles used at that time were often decorated with silver and pewter.
Back to Jesus’ time and our story. The tears that were used to wash Jesus feet, might literally been the tears of grief of a mourning woman. We don’t know for sure, the Biblical record doesn’t provide precise details, but that is definitely one possibility. It seems unlikely that the woman could have produced sufficient moisture to wash Jesus feet by simply crying at the moment. The woman was turning her grief and mourning into a blessing by using her tears to comfort and sooth Jesus’ tired feet at the end of along day.
Now for a bit of science (just a little bit): Human bodies produce at least three different types of tears, each with a unique chemical signature. Basal tears are produced nearly constantly and keep the cornea lubricated and clear of dust. Some of the chemicals in basal tears also help to fight against bacterial infection as a part of the immune system. A healthy person produces somewhere between .75 and 1.1 grams of tears in a 24-hour period. Hmm. . . I don’t think the woman was washing Jesus’ feet with basal tears. It would have taken years to generate sufficient moisture.
The second type of tears are reflex tears. Reflex tears are produced when the eye is irritated by foreign particles or irritants. Those are the tears you cry when you cut onions or are exposed to tear gas or pepper spray. Bright lights can also cause this type of tears to be produced. They attempt to wash the foreign substance out of the eye and are produced in much larger quantities than basal tears. Perhaps the woman washing Jesus’ feet had an onion hidden somewhere to help her produce her tears.
The third type of tears are emotional tears, also known as psychic tears. We weep when we experience strong emotions such as emotional stress, anger, suffering, mourning or physical pain. Those tears are also produced by positive emotions such as laughter and pleasure. These tears are quite different in chemical composition than basal or reflex tears. they have more protein-based hormones. Production of emotional tears is sparked by the limbic system, specifically by the hypothalamus. These tears also contain Leu-enkephalin, a natural painkiller. Crying literally eases one’s suffering.
Generations of our people told the story of the woman washing Jesus’ feet with her tears without knowing the details of the chemical composition of tears. Even without this knowledge, however, they understood that it was an amazing event - a story worth telling over and over again. Something wonderful happened in that exchange and we have treasured the story for so many generations.
There have been several occasions in my life, usually associated with grief and loss, when it has felt like I have been cleansed by the process of crying. I make a pretty good effort at not crying in public, though I do think I’m becoming a bit more of a sentimental fool as I age. I try to be a stable leader and a steady speaker when I am leading worship. But there are things that can trigger my emotions and spark my tears. A week ago I looked up while preaching and my eye caught the eyes of a young man who has been away for a while and had returned home for a brief visit. I remember when I held him in my arms and baptized him. It hardly seems like there could have been enough years for him to become an adult who is living a long ways from home. Even though the experience of looking at him had little to do with the subject of the sermon, there was a catch in my throat as I spoke.
Along with the stories we have told, our people have reminded ourselves in each generation that the process of grieving is a healthy and necessary process. We ought not fear our tears, but rather embrace them as signs of healing and growth. We need not fear the times of mourning, but rather embrace them as avenues for new life.
So let us lay aside our fear of weeping. It’s just good Biblical interpretation. And it is good science as well.