Mark 5:21-43
When Jesus had crossed again (in the boat)
to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him,
and he stayed close to the sea. One of
the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him
he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him,
saying, "My daughter is at the point of death.
Please, come lay your hands on her that she may
get well and live." He went off with him,
and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon
him. There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve
years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of
many doctors and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She
had heard about Jesus and came up behind him
in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, "If
I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured."
Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in
her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out
from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who
has touched my clothes?" But his disciples said to
him, "You see how the crowd is pressing upon
you, and yet you ask, ´Who touched me?´" And he
looked around to see who had done it. The
woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in
fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told
him the whole truth. He said to her, "Daughter,
your faith has saved you. Go in peace and
be cured of your affliction." While he was still speaking,
people from the synagogue official´s house arrived and said,
"Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any
longer?" Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said
to the synagogue official, "Do not be afraid; just
have faith." He did not allow anyone to accompany him
inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of
James. When they arrived at the house of the
synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping
and wailing loudly. So he went in and said
to them, "Why this commotion and weeping? The child
is not dead but asleep." And they ridiculed him.
Then he put them all out. He took along the
child´s father and mother and those who were with
him and entered the room where the child was.
He took the child by the hand and said
to her, "Talitha koum," which means, "Little girl, I
say to you, arise!" The girl, a child of twelve,
arose immediately and walked around. (At that) they were
utterly astounded. He gave strict orders that no one
should know this and said that she should be given
something to eat.
Introductory Prayer: Lord, who should
I turn to first but you? You have given me
another day. This gift calls me to come to
you first, to hear you first. My faith tells me
there can be nothing better than to follow your
plan; my hope is to bring you into my
life and to other people; my love wants to be
fuller and better — it wants to be like
yours, Lord.
Petition: Grant me
the grace of deeper trust and faith in all
moments of hardship.
1. “…afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.”
When problems are prolonged, or reach fever-pitch levels, we can
get the mistaken impression that God has lost interest.
Somehow he seems no longer moved by our misery.
All the signs say he has forgotten us, abandoned
us and left us hanging.
But God is
only seemingly absent. He is creating a new set
of circumstances wherein we can experience him at a
wholly new level. The long, hard and persevering fight
to walk in hope enables God to bring about greater
fruits of holiness in us.
In the woman with the
hemorrhage and in Jairus, father of a dying daughter,
we must contemplate a mature and vibrant faith, observing
how it conquers pessimism and transcends the cold calculations
and superficial tones of their peers. Truly this is
the first miracle we see that Jesus has worked for
them, and the most important one.
2. “And they
ridiculed him. Then he put them all out.” The dismal
voices of his “friends” come to the father. Though
they have seen the miracle of the woman with
the hemorrhage, they coldly say, “Your daughter is dead. Be
realistic. It is no use to go on.” True,
in the name of realism, we can dismiss hope and
cooperation with Christ’s action in our life. We can
ridicule Christ whenever he wants to work in mystery
and outside our human limits. We can be tempted to
abandon trust in God in the name of reaffirming
control over our world. “Let’s be realistic,” we say.
“It will never work.” These phrases veil a weak faith,
a poor faith, a sterile or compartmentalized faith that
works only when everything makes sense to us, when
everything is easy. Where there is this lack of
faith, Christ cannot work.
3. “If I but touch his
clothes, I shall be cured.” Many say they are near
Christ, yet few are acknowledged by Christ as close
to him. Many were brushing against him that day,
many were verbally praising him, many were serving him, but
only one touched him and got his full attention.
Why? Only one made an act of unconditional faith.
What is the secret? How can we really get his
attention, truly speak to his heart? None are closer
than those who trust him, who humbly depend on
him, and who wish to live from him. The woman’s
unconditional faith was open to whatever would happen, whatever
would be Christ’s response. Those who suffer and support themselves
patiently with faith and prayer experience new levels of
union with Christ.
Conversation with Christ: Lord let me use
hardships to build newer levels of trust and intimacy
with you. Open my heart to seek you on
your terms.
I do not ask
you for happiness or sorrow,
Health or
sickness,
Riches or poverty,
Freedom
or slavery,
Goods or evils;
For goods are misfortunes if you do not
come with them,
And misfortunes are goods
if they arrive with you.
For goods
without you, what good would they be?
And misfortunes
with you, are they not the best goods?
Resolution:
I will acknowledge the presence of Christ in all
the difficulties of today.
Spiritual Life
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