First Reading: Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24
Reflection:
The Book of Wisdom was written around 50 B.C. and was likely the latest written book of the Old Testament, evidencing a context close to that of the time of Christ and the writing of the New Testament. Here the author’s words take us back to creation, reminding us that sin and death were not created by God. In the beginning, God created all things good. He made everything “wholesome” as the author puts it. Within creation, God made humanity unique. He made us in His very image and likeness. With that came the ability to love and to choose. In fact, God gave us free-will in order for us to be able to love Him and each other. We would not be able to love if we had no choice in the matter, if we were simply programmed to do everything God wanted. God created us with the freedom to embrace or reject Him. And what did we do? We know the story… Adam and Eve rejected God, giving into the temptation of the devil, and thus sin and death came into the world. God is not the author of evil but merely allows it to persist in order to protect our free-will and ability to love. But as we will see in this Sunday’s gospel reading, God has the power to conquer sin and death.
Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15
Reflection:
The surrounding context of this passage involves the Apostle Paul exhorting the Corinthian Christians to contribute to a collection for the Christian church in Jerusalem due to a famine they were experiencing. This context helps us understand this Sunday’s second reading. “This gracious act” refers to contributing to the collection. Why should the Corinthian believers help out their fellow Christians far across the sea in Jerusalem? According to Paul, it is because of what Jesus Christ has done for them. They should follow the example of Jesus’ “gracious act” of becoming man and dying on the cross for their sins by completing the “gracious act” of contributing to the needs of the Christians in Jerusalem. This exhortation applies to us today too. Jesus gave everything for us. Can we not give of the many blessings we have to help those who are less fortunate? Let us be generous with what we have and offer help to those in need, especially our fellow Christians, through giving our time, talent, and treasure.
Gospel Reading: Mark 5:21-43
Reflection:
The faith of Jairus and the woman afflicted with hemorrhages is commendable. They trusted completely that Jesus could provide healing in the midst of their tragic situations. Their faith was the precursor to Jesus’ response to action. Jesus’ statement to Jairus, “Do not be afraid; just have faith,” pretty well summarizes the main theme of this Sunday’s gospel reading. Those words can provide encouragement to us today too. No matter what we are facing—whether a tragedy or good times—Jesus calls us to “just have faith.” We can trust Him completely because He has everything under control and knows what is best for us. He also has the power to do something about our situation. He is the Healer who enters our situation and breathes life into it. Jesus is God in the flesh. His humanity allows Him to relate to our situation because He too has experienced suffering, and His divinity allows Him to be able to do something about it. Furthermore, the account of Jesus rising Jairus’ daughter from the dead points forward to Jesus’ own resurrection, revealing that Jesus has power even over death. This gives us great hope, for we know that death is not the end. There is new life brought in Christ. We were made for eternity (“imperishable,” as the first reading says) and Jesus, by His power, can bring us there. But will we believe?
Application:
- Reflect on the great example of the faith of Jairus and the woman afflicted with hemorrhages. Do you trust Jesus in your day to day situations? In what life circumstances do you need to more fully surrender to Him and “just have faith”?
