Desperation of faith

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13th Sunday of Ordinary time 

We hear in today’s Gospel of Jesus’ return to his home territory. On his return a large crowd come pressing around him eager to get close to him. Through all this comes a Jairus a Jewish official.  He would have been a man who would have been involved in the rituals of the synagogue a leading man in the Jewish community. But, he has not come here to talk about the issues of the day or the ritual of the Synagogue. He has come as a desperate father who loves his daughter very much. In one sense Jairus becomes a beggar down on his knees in front of Jesus the one he believes can safe his daughter: Notice that his action speak for themselves he goes without speaking with Jairus. The crowd also follow desperate to see the drama unfold.
Then enters another part of this story the woman with an incurable haemorrhage: this condition makes her and anyone who touches her unclean. She pushes her way through to try and touch Jesus.  She knows that by her faith in the power of Jesus that just one touch from him will cure her.


Jesus is very aware that he has been touched. And asks the question of who touched him.  Jesus does not want to be used as a mobile curing machine some kind of walking relic. The cure requires a relationship so he looks around for the person who touched him. She comes forward frightened and falls to her feet. Jesus is not angry, he is not there to humiliate her but to praise the faith that she has. The story is interrupted by the fact that Jairus daughter has died. This time Jesus speaks to Juaris and says that he is not to be afraid and have faith in him.

Jesus taking his inner circle comes to the bed side of the girl. He leaves to sceptics outside but Jesus says she is asleep not dead and tells the girl to get up. And to prove that this is a real; miracle he tells the girl to get something to eat.

It is worth seeing the detail here in the Gospel today. It shows that Jesus always helps those who seek him. We seek Jesus when we are ill in the sacrament of the sick. This sacrament again is for many catholic’s only used as a last resort. But, it can be requested when we are going into hospital for an operation. In the past it was only used at the last few moments of the person’s life. This is not the case now. It is also as we have seen in the Gospel’s today something that is requested in faith. We need to  keep asking the Lord in faith to help us through a particular illness: this may also lead to real loss when someone close to us dies who has been ill. We must listen again to the words of the Gospel today “Do not be afraid; only have faith. 

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