There are only three instances in the Gospels where Jesus raised the dead back to life. Our Gospel today is one among the three – the raising of the daughter of Jairus, a synagogue official. This account occurs in the three synoptic Gospels – in Matthew, Mark and Luke. The second one is the raising of the widow’s son at Nain, in the Gospel of Luke. The third one is the raising of Lazarus, the close friend of Jesus, in the Gospel of John. Of the different miracles that Jesus performed his power to bring the dead back to life set him apart from other so-called God-sent prophets and ministers. For many who witnessed these miracles, it confirmed to them his divinity, that He was indeed the Son of God, the Messiah. In their minds, no ordinary human person could do such a thing. This was something supernatural. Jesus was exceptional. There was no one like Him. He was indeed God. Everyone was left amazed and captivated. Suddenly, they couldn’t get enough of him.
Easily, these miracles could have been Christ’s answer to those who doubted his person and capability – to his detractors, haters and bashers. If Christ were like the social media content creators of our time, this could easily boost his popularity, engagement and influence – instant likes, hearts, shares and subscribes. These miracles would definitely be viral. He could have monetized these miracles, maximizing the benefit he could draw from them.
This, of course, was the farthest thing in his mind. He did not do such a thing. In fact, he did the opposite. In the end of the Gospel, Jesus issued a gag order to the people there: No one should know, not a word about this. He did not want publicity. He did not want popularity. He did not want people’s admiration and veneration. It definitely was not for the clout, not for the likes or hearts, not to increase his followers. What are they for then for our Lord? What’s his motivation? What made him do those wonders?
The truth is the miracles he performed were always rooted in his desire to attend to the needs of those who were seeking comfort and consolation. They were fruits of his mercy, compassion and love for people. He wanted to assure them that God was not blind and deaf to their pain and suffering. He wanted to make them experience intimately God’s grace. It was never about proving himself, being acknowledged and worshipped as God. For our Lord, the great wonders he had done and continues to do at the present time are not intended to show off his divinity, but to profoundly express his total solidarity with people, with us – embracing fully human life. He is one with us in our grief, sorrow, distress and agony. He knows we need him the most during our moments of vulnerability and weakness. Just like in the case of Jairus, helpless and desperate, not knowing how to save his daughter at the point of death, Christ meets us and attends to our needs. Especially during moments when there seems nothing more that can be done, when things are impossible already, our Lord steps in and saves the day for us. He is there because he is the Lord of life whose love for us is everlasting. His desire is for life to flourish in us, for us to live life to the fullest, with meaning and purpose. As affirmed in our First Reading today from the Book of Wisdom: “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.”
Brothers and sisters, in which particular area of our lives, in what particular vulnerability, in what specific concern do we need God most in our life at the present time? Can we allow him to attend to us, to work in us, to do his wonder in our lives? Can we allow him to bring back to life parts of our selves that have become dead? May we put our complete faith and trust in our Lord who never abandons his people so that as our Psalm today proclaim, we can likewise declare: “I will praise you Lord, for you have rescued me.”
Homily delivered by Fr. Erwin “Bok” Arandia, SJ
13th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024
Cenacle Retreat House