Homily Thirteenth Sunday Year B Faith in Jesus
Homily Thirteenth Sunday Year B
Reading 1: God did not make death. He created life. He
created us in his own image and likeness to live forever. When he breathed life
into man and woman he gave us of his spirit. Our soul is immortal. God did not only want us to be immortal but
to one with him. He shared his own divine life with us so that we may live with
him forever in glory.
All that God created was and is good. So how does
death enter into our journey? We read in the reading: “But by the envy of the
devil, death entered the world.” Death comes from sin. The death that the
writer is reflecting on is not physical death but spiritual death. Because of
sin we have become separated from God. But the will of God is that we be one
again with him. So he sent his Son as Savior of the world. Through his death
and resurrection he has destroyed the death that separates us from God. This is
called the second death. Those who die
alienated from God through sin are of the devil’s company. Therefore they will
experience after physical death this permanent second death.
But those who embrace the life of Jesus and die in him
will pass from physical death into eternal union with God. For this reason Paul says: “Death where is
your sting? Where is your victory?” He knew the gift of life given to him and
us through faith in Jesus Christ.
Reading 2: Because we are disciples of Jesus and are
empowered and led through the anointing of the Holy Spirit, we are called to
see things differently. All belongs to God. We are stewards of the gifts God
has blessed us with. As a result, Paul says, one who is filled with the Spirit
is to be a generous person. We are rich in Christ whether we have much or little.
Trusting in the word of God that he loves a generous
giver, the disciple seeks what God wants him/her to do, when an opportunity to
financially help another happens. The person doesn’t give beyond one’s means,
but in gratitude to God for what has been given him/her.
What is the background of Paul’s admonition to the
community in Corinth? The faith community in Jerusalem is undergoing persecution
and economic struggles. Paul is asking the Gentile communities, including
Corinth, to take up a collection to help them, not out of obligation but out of
gratitude to God for their blessings. . As Paul says: “Your abundance at the
present time should supply their needs.”
Gospel: Jesus said: “I have come that you may have
life, life to the fullest.” Extended illness is debilitating to life to the
fullest. Physical life ends physical life. Jesus restores both the woman with
this particular illness and the young girl to a more satisfying experience of
physical life in anticipation of the fullness of life he desires for us.
Both Jairus and the woman saw Jesus as one who is
empowered by God to heal the sick. Initially, Jairus did not see Jesus as one
who could restore physical life after death occurs. In both instances, what was
needed? The woman believed that Jesus could heal her, if she merely touched his
robe. But her healing is not just for her. Jesus calls her to publicly attest
to the power of God restoring her to a fuller experience of life for the sake
of Jairus.
When Jairus is told that his daughter has died and it
was no longer necessary for Jesus to do anything, Jesus challenges Jairus to
believe and trust in God’s plan. Jesus goes with the official, whose level of
faith is being tested. Jesus raises his daughter to physical life from physical
death. For he is the Lord of life.
Both the physical healing and the physical restoration
to physical life point to the greater mystery of life with God forever in
glory. Both are presented to draw us to the person who is the source of life.
The greater miracle and sign of God’s love is our eternal salvation and eternal
union with God in the fullness of eternal life.
Physical death is not the end of life. Without faith
in God, it will seemed to be. But our
relationship with God and our faith in his promises reminds us that he is the
Resurrection and the Life. We know that we will physically die but we believe if
we die in Christ, we will live with him forever.
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