When Everything Else Fails…

Rev. Marcel Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

St. Gerard Majella Church, Baton Rouge, LA

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Today’s Gospel has certain elements of tragedy in it: the near death experience of a sick young girl and a woman’s twelve years of sickness (hemorrhages) without any cure or even a small relief in sight. The women in both stories were in desperate situations that needed desperate and urgent responses. The first story is about the daughter of one of the synagogue officials, named Jairus. His daughter was on the threshold of womanhood when death came and was knocking on her door. Her father, Jairus, was not just a synagogue official, he was one of the most important and most respected men in the community. He was the administrative head of the synagogue, the president of the board of elders whose responsibility it was for the good administration and management of the synagogue. Jairus was a highly placed official, but when his daughter became sick and was about to die, he remembered Jesus. Jairus was a lord, but when his daughter’s life was about to be snatched from her, he reached out and appealed to another man who was not only the Lord, but the Lord of lords. 

The folks in the synagogue did not like Jesus at all. They saw him as an outsider, a dangerous heretic, as someone that should be kept out of the synagogue. They regarded him as a law-breaker, and as someone to be avoided by those who cherish their orthodoxy. Jairus was one of those folks. Their hatred for Jesus was deep-set because his teachings and lifestyle called for a theological, cultural, social, political and economic revolution. His way and modus operandi challenged the status quo in every sphere of life. His teaching was also gaining momentum among the people, as such, synagogue folks hated him. But when Jairus’ daughter was seriously ill and dying, he abandoned his hateful prejudice, sought for Jesus, and on finding him 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” (Mark 5:23). Check this out! Jairus had to cast aside his political and religious positions. He forgot his dignity and pride and threw himself at the feet of the one he once called awful names. The words of the Bible: “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (Psalm 118:22; Matthew 21:42; Acts 4:11) became a reality in this case. But to his credit, Jairus was able to put off his reputation- probably his office and positions, even some of his friends- put on the virtue of humility in order to save the life of his daughter. As a highly placed synagogue official, he must have been warned not to seek the help of Jesus, not to approach him because doing so would mean legitimizing Jesus and his teaching. The problem of others is usually regarded as “their problem” until the same problem comes calling on the one who once thought it was their problem. When Jesus was healing other sick people, Jairus was one of those who despised him. But when his daughter became a victim, it became his problem too. But glory be to God he was not an intransigent and unbending person. He was wise to cast aside everything: his initial prejudice on Jesus, dignity, pride, religious and political positions, friends and admirers etc and sought for the help of the Lord. And because of that singular act of humility and letting go, he and his daughter experienced Jesus as a Savior and Lord of life. 

Sisters and brothers, what are you gonna let go of in order to experience Jesus as the Savior, the Healer and Lord of your life? As we celebrate the feast of Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, let’s pray with the Blessed Mother who let go of her personal goal and plan in life and freely accepted God’s will for her: “I am the handmaid of the Lord, may it be done to me according to the Lord’s words” (Luke 1: 38).

The second story is about the woman with hemorrhages. According to the Gospel, “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” (Mark 5:26). Her case was dire because her sickness rendered her unclean, and also shut her out from the worship of God and fellowship of the community. In those days, hemorrhages did not only deprive the afflicted the good and happy life, it also deprived them the right to associate with others. The illness made the afflicted ritually unclean to join in worship and to fellowship with the rest of the society (Leviticus 15:25-27). 

This unnamed woman had tried the medical doctors of her time, spent everything she had, but the result was that she did not feel better, instead she got worse. She appeared more pale, thin, haggard and weak. A constant loss of blood is a serious medical concern. To lose blood is to lose good health and strength, and to lose life itself. Blood is so important that if it’s not enough in the body, life may cease to exist. When every human attempt to find a solution to her problem failed, someone told her about Jesus. Credit should be given to this woman for not being oblivion or careless or unserious to what was happening to her. She wasn’t like some people who, knowing that something is wrong with them, would not want to see a doctor. Some would even be in denial. Some would fold their hands and claim to be waiting on the Lord. But this woman tried to find a cure for her sickness. Her neighbors, friends and relatives knew she had sold everything she had in search of medical cure. But when everything and everyone failed, someone brought the good news about Jesus to her and encouraged her to try him. The Gospel says that “She had heard about Jesus and came behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak” (Mark 5:27). Before touching Jesus, she had said to herself, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.” Great faith! Great statement of faith! And on touching Jesus, “flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.” 

These two great miracles in this Gospel happened by means of touching. The dying girl was touched by Jesus; the woman with hemorrhages on the other hand, touched Jesus. What’s your story? Are you at the point of dying spiritually, financially, socially, psychologically, emotionally, materially, relationally? Have you spent all you had trying to salvage a situation? Jesus can still touch you, and you can still touch him as well. Like the father of the dying little girl, speak, “Lord, I am at the point of death. Please come and lay your hands on me. Do something about my situation.” But do you have the kind of expectant faith that the woman with the flow of blood had? Jesus can still touch you; you can still touch him. He can still  make us whole again.