Jesus says to the sick girl in today’s Gospel: “Talitha koum!” This means: “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” We have the faith to know that Jesus will raise us all to everlasting life. This is the hope for all of us who have faith and believe!
St. Paul exhorts us today to be our better, most generous selves. (Advice for so many…) He reminds us to “excel in every respect” in all the ways we must be in this world. His vision for us believers is one of sharing and love; as instruments of grace for God. In this time of so much selfishness, division, blame and fear, we have the words of St. Paul to remind us of our lives in Christ; and Jesus’ words reminding us: “Do not be afraid; just have faith.”
Today the Book of Wisdom teaches us that life, like all created things, is “wholesome.” “God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.” We know, though, that somehow that divine wholesomeness gets corrupted; that sin comes into our world, and as a result: illness and death surround us. Yet, we are not left adrift and alone. We have the teachings of St. Paul and the Words of Jesus for comfort and guidance. Because we believe, Jesus takes us by the hand like Jairus’s daughter, delivers us, and makes us whole. Praise be to God!
Keep singing!
Elizabeth Dyc