 |
“Christ Resurrects the Daughter of Jairus”
by Friedrich Overbeck, 1815 |
Readings for the
Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time [2]
Readings from the
Jerusalem Bible [3]
Readings
and Commentary: [4]
Reading
1: Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24
God
did not make death,
nor
does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.
For
he fashioned all things that they might have being;
and
the creatures of the world are wholesome,
and
there is not a destructive drug among them
nor
any domain of the netherworld on earth,
for
justice is undying.
For
God formed man to be imperishable;
the
image of his own nature he made him.
But
by the envy of the devil, death entered the world,
and
they who belong to his company experience it.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Wis
1:13-15; 2:23-24
The
author of the Book of Wisdom speaks of “spiritual” death in this first part of
the book (there is a general indifference to the physical life of the body
throughout). The Wisdom passage is part of a general statement that, through living a just life in accord
with the wisdom of God, one achieves salvation. This notion of eternal life of
the spirit is emphasized, and the idea that nothing on the physical plane can
cause spiritual death is strengthened (“there is not a destructive drug
among them nor any domain of the netherworld on earth, for justice is undying”).
Wisdom proposes, however, that spiritual death enters through the devil, who
may pervert the spirit and ultimately claim the victory of death.
CCC:
Wis 1:13 413, 1008; Wis 2:23-24 1008; Wis 2:24 391, 413, 2538
-------------------------------------------
Responsorial
Psalm: Psalm 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11,
12, 13
R. (2a) I
will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
I
will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear
and
did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O
LORD, you brought me up from the netherworld;
you
preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
R.
I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Sing
praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones,
and
give thanks to his holy name.
For
his anger lasts but a moment;
a
lifetime, his good will.
At
nightfall, weeping enters in,
but
with the dawn, rejoicing.
R.
I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Hear,
O LORD, and have pity on me;
O
LORD, be my helper.
You
changed my mourning into dancing;
O
LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.
R.
I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps
30:2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13
Psalm
30 is an individual hymn of praise. In this selection we find the singer
praising God for deliverance. In the second part, others are asked to join in
the hymn and then there is a return to thanks and praise in the final strophe.
The image of resurrection is clearly evident in the first strophe: “O Lord,
you brought me up from the netherworld; you preserved me from among those going
down into the pit.”
-------------------------------------------
Reading
II: 2 Corinthians 8:7, 9,
13-15
Brothers
and sisters:
As
you excel in every respect, in faith, discourse,
knowledge,
all earnestness, and in the love we have for you,
may
you excel in this gracious act also.
For
you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that
though he was rich, for your sake he became poor,
so
that by his poverty you might become rich.
Not
that others should have relief while you are burdened,
but
that as a matter of equality
your
abundance at the present time should supply their needs,
so
that their abundance may also supply your needs,
that
there may be equality.
As
it is written:
Whoever
had much did not have more,
and
whoever had little did not have less.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on 2
Cor 8:7, 9, 13-15
St.
Paul continues an appeal to the church at Corinth for funds to support the
church of Jerusalem. In this section of that appeal, he uses the gracious act
of Jesus, who gave up his wealth (his preexistence with the Heavenly Father)
for poverty (his earthly life). He then proceeds to introduce the discussion of
equality between the various parts of the Body of Christ (the Church). The apostle
encourages this fiscal equality to the extent possible, but not to the extent
that the donor becomes poorer than the recipient of the donation. He concludes
with a quote from Exodus
16: 18, using the example of the rules imposed about manna gathered in
the desert.
CCC:
2 Cor 8:1-15 2833; 2 Cor 8:9 517, 1351, 2407, 2546
-------------------------------------------
Gospel: 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 Jesus,
"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.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mk
5:21-43
This selection from Mark’s Gospel begins with Jesus
continuing his journey of healing. The passage relates two interwoven examples
of the power of faith in healing. First, it presents the synagogue official’s
plea to Jesus to heal his daughter. This is important in that it is recognition
of Jesus' status by the local faith community. An official from the synagogue
would consult only with one widely recognized as an authority in spiritual
matters.
On the way to the little girl, a woman with a hemorrhage that
had been incurable by local physicians pressed in close and touched his cloak.
She was cured; it was as if her faith reached out and touched Jesus. Unlike the
others crowded around, he felt her touch among all the others. He turned and
was able to specifically identify her. The Lord’s words to her were: “your
faith has saved you.”
Arriving at the synagogue official's house, Jairus’ faith was
tested a second time as he was informed his daughter had died. Jesus ignored
these reports and proceeded to reward Jairus’ faith by bringing his daughter
back from death, a sign of his mission to all mankind.
CCC:
Mk 5:21-42 994; Mk 5:25-34 548; Mk 5:28 2616; Mk 5:34 1504; Mk 5:36 1504, 2616
-------------------------------------------
Or: Mark 5:21-24, 35b-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.
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.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary on Mk
5:21-24, 35b-43
This shortened form of the Gospel omits the discourse about
the healing of the woman with a hemorrhage. This omission sharpens the Gospel
focus on Christ’s mission for the salvation of humanity through the new
resurrection.
CCC:
Mk 5:21-42 994; Mk 5:36 1504, 2616
-------------------------------------------
Reflection:
We reflect today about the entire notion of life and death
and how our Lord has triumphed over death. We begin with a consideration of the
reading from the Book of Wisdom. The author gives us words of hope when he says,
“God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the
living.” We immediately think of life and death in spiritual terms because,
unlike the superstitious, we understand that the physical death of the body
must come. It is a biological fact. Anyone who has reached “old age” recognizes
that continuing life indefinitely in a body that will ultimately wear out is
not a happy prospect.
Does that mean that what we do in this physical life does
not matter? No. We offer as a crude analogy the early life of danaus plexippus, the Monarch Butterfly.
Like all butterflies and moths the early stage of the monarch's life is spent
as a larva. During this period of life, the caterpillar goes about eating and
performing its life functions. If it is greedy or careless it may be caught by
a predator or killed in some other ways. Individuals who die that way never
become butterflies. They have died. However, those individuals who survive the
larval stage become pupas or chrysalides. To an untrained eye, they appear
dead: there is no movement, no animation to alert the observer that life exists
there. At the appointed time, metamorphosis occurs, and the butterfly emerges
alive now but transformed.
The point of this analogy is not to try to demonstrate what
happens at the physical death of the human being. Rather it demonstrates the
linkage between decisions made during physical life in the body to the
prospects for eternal life in the spirit. If the spirit dies during our lives
in the body, it is dead. It is the possession of the evil one and death has its
victory. It is therefore imperative that we listen to God’s voice who is the
author of life and who has authority over it.
This authority is what we see demonstrated in the Gospel.
Jesus rewards the faith of Jairus by pushing aside the physical death of his
child. He does so in response to the spiritual plea of the man alive in faith.
Life responds to life.
The message we take away from our reflection on life and
death is that our life, the life God was pleased to give us, is precious and
should be viewed as such – a gift to be cared for. But life of the spirit is the true gift, the gift that animates the
flesh and is interwoven with it as we walk the world as Jesus did. God gives us
his commandments that we might receive the Lord’s promise and have eternal life
in the spirit. We rejoice in the path that leads to life, even though it is
difficult and fraught with pitfalls. We ask for his help as we walk upon the
way.
Pax
In other years on June 30th: Optional
Memorial for the First Holy Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church
[1]
Catechism links are taken from the
Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for
Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2]
The picture is “Christ
Resurrects the Daughter of Jairus” by Friedrich Overbeck, 1815.[3]
S.S. Commemoratio[4]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible, except
for the psalm and its response which were developed by the International
Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized
by USCCB and is for private use only.
