St. Jude Catholic Church

13th Sunday of Year B - June 28, 2009
After reading: Mk 5:21-43

"There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages..."

She'd tried the usual remedies. She'd gone to the doctors and sought all the relief her money could buy. With minor problems, we depend on ourselves, on our money, or on technology to get us through. But, she was faced with the reality that these weren't enough to help her through her problems. The only sure help is from God. And she came to realize that her hope lay in Jesus.

She feared to bother Jesus with her suffering. She truly believed in his power to heal, but she was embarrassed to ask for help. She felt - unclean - undeserving of his time. People knew that she was "ill" and kept their distance. They saw how poor she was now that she'd spent all her money. Instead of offering to help, they looked down on her. And their attitude toward her affected the way she saw herself. How could she approach someone as great as Jesus when she felt like she was nothing special?

There he was, talking to one of the synagogue officials. They must have important business to discuss. They must be talking about things that were beyond her, complex ideas that she'd never understand. Maybe they were analyzing the regulations for fasting, or pondering the nature of angels, or whatever it is religious authorities spend their time thinking about. Her concerns were so simple. She was sick. She was hurting. She needed the power of Jesus to make her whole again. There was no great theological issue involved. She simply needed the saving power of God. Yet, she couldn't ask. No, she couldn't interrupt them.

"If I could just get close enough to Jesus... I won't bother Him. I won't presume to take up His time. I believe in Jesus. If I could just, touch His clothes, I'll get well. I know it."

And so, timid, yet sure in her faith, she reached out her hand to Jesus. And God answered her prayers.

How like Jesus to stop, to take time to speak with her, to take time to listen to her story. She'd been healed physically, but she was still in fear. She stood face to face with this great man, and it was more than she could bear. She fell to the ground trembling. And Jesus gave her what she never dreamed He would. He gave her attention. He gave her a caring word. He gave her a lasting peace in her heart. And he told her that not only was she saved from her pain and suffering, but that she was saved. For years, she'd let all those people's attitudes get her down. She'd believed that she was nothing. Now, Jesus cured her of her self-doubts. Now she believed what God had to say about her - that she could be loved, that she was loved as His own adopted daughter. And she allowed God's love to enter her heart and fill her with peace.

There was a woman afflicted with loneliness in Radford. Or, there was a man afflicted with self-doubts in Christiansburg... But, I'll let you work on that story.