Thirteenth Sunday of the year June 27, 2021
Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24; 2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15; Mark 5:21-43
Once in a small town, a curious case came up in the court. An elderly man had been caught stealing two loaves of bread. He was presented before the magistrate who conducted the full hearing in the presence of 120 people who had come curiously to listen to the judgment. The man gave the reason that his wife, three children, and elderly parents were starving and he was unemployed. He had no money to buy bread to feed his starving family. After questioning and listening to the arguments, the judge was very angry and said this was a terrible crime and the man must be fined and he set a fine of Rupees one hundred. The accused thief was ashamed and put down his head as he had no money to pay. The Judge then did a strange thing. He quietly took out his purse and pulled out a hundred Rupee note and told the officer to accept the payment on behalf of the accused. Then he raised the voice and said it is something more criminal when a man without a job had to steal bread to feed the family while 120 are wasting their time to watch the fun. All those present are fined one Rupee per head and asked the officer to collect the amount. He handed over that money to the accused man to buy food and told him to come the next day and he would get him a job. It was truly a miracle in the life of a man who had secured a new life.
The First Reading from the Book of Wisdom reminds us that we are all created in the image and likeness of God. Our calling is to enjoy eternal life in God’s presence. The created world guides us along the path of life as long as see creation for what it is and it will always remain a beautiful gift of God for us.
St Paul in the Second Reading reminds the Corinthians how Jesus, rich though he was became poor for our sake, to make them all rich out of his poverty. Naked and destitute on the cross he poured out his love on us. He even gave his life that we might have life. And because of that he, too, lives forever. And we have been immeasurable enriched.
The Gospel has a unique message to tell us. Touching, like hugging and other forms of gentle, direct bodily contact, express love and acceptance of the other person in ways that words cannot. Touching is a two-way traffic; it affects both the person touched and the person doing the touching.
Traditional societies regulated touching by making rules regarding who and what could or could not be touched. It was believed that touching the wrong persons and things would defile the one doing the touching and render him or her unclean. According to ancient Jewish ritual law, the woman suffering from haemorrhage was in a state of impurity and any person who touched her or anything that had come in contact with her was instantly rendered impure (Leviticus 15:19-30). Holy people such as priests were forbidden to touch dead bodies or they would incur defilement (Leviticus 21:1-12). Today’s gospel, therefore, is not simply a story of Jesus’ power to heal the sick and raise the dead. It is also a story of Jesus giving and restoring life by doing exactly what he was not supposed to do, namely, touching and letting himself be touched by those whom the Law had declared unclean and untouchable.
If we notice closely today’s gospel, there are two kinds of touching happening in the story: the touch of the crowd which produces nothing and the woman’s touch which produces miracles. What is the difference between the many touches from the crowd and the one touch from the woman, which releases the power of Jesus? You are right if you say that the difference lies in the degree of expectant faith with which the touching is made. There is a joke which asks the question: What is the difference between people who pray in church and those who pray in casinos? And the answer is: The ones in the casinos are really serious! The woman with haemorrhage was really serious and expecting something to happen when she approached to touch the clothes of Jesus.
Today is Laity Sunday. Through the Gospel we understand that all had equal share in the Kingdom of God. These two periscopes tell us, through Jesus’ action, that God is compassionate, sensitive and caring to all. He has time for each one of us – big time people like Jairus and small time people like the unnamed woman. Our God has time for all of us. Miracles do happen in our life through various ways. Let us then recognise them and feel the presence of God in and around us. He is our hope.
(You are most welcome to add your comments and reflections below)
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