13^th Sunday in O.T. (B); July 1, 2018

Wis 1:13-15; 2:23-24   Ps 30   2 Cor 8:7,9,13-15   Mk 5:21-43

Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison; SJB

 

            Today’s Gospel presents one of the most beautifully crafted of Mark’s narratives. It begins with Jesus hearing the news that the daughter of Jarius is dying. The fact that the leader of the synagogue approached Jesus is significant because it was so uncharacteristic of synagogue leaders because they simply didn’t beseech Jesus for anything. Indeed, they stood and watched him disapprovingly. They discredited him as a lawbreaker because he works on the Sabbath or as unclean because of his contact with those who have transgressed purity codes.   But Jarius is suppliant, who falls at the feet of Jesus and beseeches him: “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live” (Mk 5:23).

In this prayer we hear the concern of every father for the life and well being of their child. The man is afraid and he is desperate; so, he goes to Jesus. There is nothing wrong with fear and desperation as starting points, but, as the story unfolds both Jarius and his wife will be called to move beyond fear.

The man must have had great faith in Jesus. And, when news arrives that the little girl has died, Jesus tells him: “Do not fear, only believe” (v. 36). How often have we heard this throughout the Bible? Believe—trust in the Lord! In all circumstances, in the ups and downs of life, but above all at the moment of death, we want to trust in the Lord. Trust, brothers and sisters, turns the terror of death into hope for Resurrected Life.

Entering the house, the Lords sends away the mourners, who would be called upon when someone died. They would publicly wail and carry on as an expression of the grief of the family. Jesus meets these people, who are verbally acting out of fear and sends them away. Jesus’ teachings and presence are not accessible to the mourners because they are gripped by fear, so they are dismissed. Only the immediate family and Jesus’ inner circle are allowed to go further. There must be a level of faith through which they are going to witness. They must hold onto the love of God that makes all things possible in the face of wailing and weeping.

Then we have that intimate touch conveyed by Mark when “He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha Koun,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” (v. 41). And, she arises, awakening as if from sleep. Here we see Jesus’ absolute power over death, which is like a dream from which one can awaken.

The Evangelist inserts another episode in the middle of this account: the healing of a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years. Because of this ailment, which, according to the culture at the time, rendered her “impure,” she was forced to avoid all human contact. The poor woman was condemned to social isolation, civic death. In the midst of the crowd following Jesus, this unknown woman says to herself: “If I touch even his garments, I shall be made well” (v. 28). Immediately aware that power had gone out of him, Jesus asks who has touched him. Both Jesus and the woman know “it” has happened. Salvific power has gone out and salvific power has been received. But, there is a need to make conscious the salvific work of divine love. So, the woman comes forward in “fear and trembling” and He says to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well” (v. 34). By calling her ‘daughter’, Jesus is addressing her true identity as a beloved child of God the Father and it was that deeper identity that gave her the courage to reach out for God’s love as it was manifesting itself in Jesus. God’s love is for God’s children, and she is one of God’s children. She is not cursed; she is not excluded; she is God’s beloved child.

Brothers and sisters, every time Jesus approaches us, when we go forth to him in faith, we will feel this from the Father: “Child, you are my son, you are my daughter! You are healed. I forgive everyone for everything. I heal all people and all things.”

These two episodes—a healing and a resurrection—share one core: faith. The message is very clear, and it can be summed up in one question: do we believe that Jesus can heal us and can raise us from the dead? The entire Gospel is written in the light of this faith: Jesus is risen, He has conquered death, and by his victory we too will rise again.

This faith invites us to live in the certainty of the Resurrection: Jesus is the Lord—He is God among us! Jesus has power over evil and over death, and he wants to lead us to the house of His Father, where life reigns forever. And there the People of God will meet again in the house of our Father, in the life that Jesus will give us.

Jesus is the giver of Life. Those who acknowledge Jesus as Lord must acknowledge this and promote life in every situation, in order that everyone, especially the weakest and most vulnerable, experiences the love of God who frees and saves. Thanks be to God!