Exploring the Divine affirmation of life (Homily for the 13th Sunday in ordinary time year II June 30 2024

Homily for the 13th Sunday in ordinary time year II June 30 2024

Wisdom 1:13-15, 2:23-24; Psalm 30; 2Corinthians 8:7,9,13-15; Mark 5:21-43

Exploring the Divine affirmation of life

The scriptural passage from Wisdom 2:23-24 serves as the foundation for our reflection, asserting that God created humanity for an incorruptible existence, in the likeness of His eternal nature. Yet, it was through the envy of the devil that death made its entrance into the world, afflicting those aligned with such malevolence. It is a fundamental truth that God champions life; any force that undermines or destroys life is not of divine origin but a consequence of human sinfulness.

Today's Gospel presents us with two instances where Jesus Christ, emulating His Father, acts as an agent of life. He first restores health to a woman afflicted with hemorrhage, and then He resurrects a young girl.

In the initial miracle, we witness Jesus healing a woman who had suffered from hemorrhage for twelve years. Upon hearing of Jesus, she approached Him in faith, touching His garment, believing in her healing. Her faith was immediately rewarded as her condition ceased. While many thronged around Jesus, it was her act of faith that distinguished her touch and brought about her healing. This distinction underscores a profound spiritual principle: proximity to Jesus without faith is ineffectual. True contact with the divine occurs when we approach with genuine faith, seeking grace to conquer sin and the fortitude to fulfill our obligations.

The second miracle unfolds as Jesus is en route to the house of a synagogue ruler. Despite being interrupted by the woman's healing, Jesus continues His journey, only to be informed of the girl's death. Yet, for Jesus, she was merely asleep. Here, the narrative differentiates between physical death and the more grievous spiritual death—eternal separation from God due to sin. Jesus, as the restorer of life, awakens the girl, symbolically demonstrating His power over life and death.

The synagogue ruler's gratitude is echoed in the Responsorial Psalm, praising God for the gift of life. Similarly, St. Paul, in his epistle to the Corinthians, exhorts the community to embody Christ's compassion by aiding the persecuted Church of Jerusalem. Paul reminds us that Jesus, though divine and rich, embraced poverty to bestow upon us the wealth of eternal life. This ethos of generosity, if embraced universally, could revolutionize the world, ensuring that none suffer from want.

God, as the author of life, never intends suffering for His children. The afflictions we face are the repercussions of humanity's fall from grace. The life bestowed upon us by God is a sacred trust, and we are called to collaborate with Him in its preservation. We must ardently seek life, as did the synagogue ruler, embrace it fully like the hemorrhaging woman, and cling to it with the tenacity of St. Paul, all the while defining it with the wisdom of Scripture.

Let us pray for an increase in faith, that we may fully partake in the abundant life God offers through His Son, and that this divine gift may be ours as we journey through life, culminating in our eternal sojourn with Christ our Lord. Amen.