SYNOPSIS OF O. T. XIII [B] (7/1/2012) I COR 8:7, 9, 13-15; MK 5: 21-43
(L)
Introduction: Today’s readings speak of the
gift of life, both physical and spiritual, that God has given us. They urge and
challenge us to be grateful for our health in body and soul and to use God’s
gifts of life and health responsibly. Scripture
lessons: The first reading from
the Book of Wisdom tells us that God gave us life and health and it was the
jealousy of the Satan that produced illness and death. The reading also suggests
that the goal of our lives on earth is to know, to love and to serve God
here with perfect health in body and soul, and to share God’s immortal
life forever. In the second reading, St. Paul asks the Corinthian
Christian community to show the kindness and compassion which Jesus expressed
in his healing ministry to their Jewish brothers and sisters in Jerusalem
living in poverty and sickness, by raising a fund for them. The generosity of Jesus is the central theme
here also, because Paul describes Jesus’ life, death and resurrection as “the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Today’s gospel describes two of our
Lord's miracles, the healing of a woman from her chronic bleeding
disease and the revival of the dead daughter of Jairus to
life. These healings teach us that Jesus willed life, and willed
full life for all God’s children. The
two healings also reveal Jesus as a generous, kind and compassionate
God Who wills that men should live their wholesome lives fully. They
also give us further proof of the divine power and the infinite mercy of
our Savior. These miracles were worked by Jesus as reward for the trusting
faith of a synagogue ruler and of a woman with a hemorrhage, although the faith
of the ruler may have been defective and the woman’s faith may have been a bit
superstitious. But Jesus amply rewarded their defective faith by granting them
health and life.
Life messages:
# 1: We need to accept God’s call to health, wholeness and holiness. Jesus accepts us as we are. Hence, let us bring before him our bodily
illnesses and spiritual wounds and ask for his healing touch. As Christians, we believe that Jesus
continues to heal us through his instruments in the medical profession like
doctors, nurses and medical technicians. Hence, when we go to a doctor, we need
to offer a prayer to Christ The Divine
Healer that we may choose the right doctor, and that s/he will make the
correct diagnosis, prescribe the correct treatment and give us the right
medicine. Let us not forget the truth, that Christ still works wonders of
healing. Let us also thank God for the
great gift of health and use it for helping those who are sick.
#2: We need to continue the healing mission of the Church:
As members of the Church, we are not excused from our vocation to be
healers. We do our share of Christ’s
healing mission by visiting the sick, by praying for their healing, and by
boosting their morale with our loving presence, words of encouragement and
inspiration. Thus, we may enable them to experience the compassion of Jesus.
O.T. XIII:
WISDOM 1:13-15, 2:23-24; I COR 8:7, 9, 13-15; MARK 5:21--43
Anecdote
# 1: “Do not
be afraid; just have faith.”Ann Jillian, a three-time Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actress and singer, is an
American actress born to Roman Catholic Lithuanian immigrant
parents. Since
1985, she has added motivational speaking to her impressive list of credits,
addressing business, medical, professional and women's groups with her own
unique blend of humor and inspiration. Her prowess extends from the world’s
concert halls, to feature film and the Broadway stage. She has starred in
over 25 TV movies, and made hundreds of other TV appearances. Her TV movie, The Ann Jillian Story, which recounts
her victory over breast cancer, was the #1 film of that TV season, but, more
important, it delivered Ann's message about the hopeful side of breast cancer
to its millions of viewers. In 1985, the then
35-year-old actress made headlines when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. On her
way to the hospital to check the nature of the growth which she had
noticed, she stopped at St. Francis de Sales Church
# 2: Widow of Dr. Martin Luther King: The whole
world was saddened when Coretta Scott King, widow of Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. died in a medical clinic in Mexico Mexico United
States Mexico
#3: "This is where I found Christ." Here is a
beautiful old story about Zacchaeus, the tax collector. It tells how in later
years, he rose early every morning and left his house. His wife, curious,
followed him one morning. At the town well he filled a bucket... and he walked
until he came to a sycamore tree. There, setting down the bucket, he began to
clean away the stones, the branches, and the rubbish from around the base of
the tree. Having done that, he poured water on the roots and stood there in
silence, gently caressing the trunk with both of his hands. When his amazed
wife came out of hiding and asked what he was doing, Zacchaeus replied simply,
"This is where I found Christ." I can just imagine that for the rest
of their lives, that woman who touched the tassel of Jesus' robe that day on
the street... and the daughter of Jairus who was raised up in that room in her
home, continually brought people back to those sacred spots and said,
"This is where I found Christ! This is where Christ loved me into
life!" Do you have a sacred spot like that? This is the Good News of our
Christian faith, isn't it? Love has the power to heal, to reconcile, and to
redeem.
Introduction: Today’s readings speak of the
gift of life, both physical and spiritual, that God has given us. They urge and
challenge us to be grateful for our health in body and soul and to use God’s
gifts of life and health responsibly. Scripture
Lessons: The
first reading, taken from the Book of Wisdom, tells us that God gave us
life and health and it was the jealousy of the Satan that produced illness and death.
The reading also suggests that the goal of our lives on earth is to
know, to love and to serve God here with perfect health in body and soul, and
to share God’s immortal life forever In the second reading, St.
Paul asks the Corinthian Christian community to show the kindness and
compassion which Jesus expressed in his healing ministry to their Jewish
brothers and sisters in Jerusalem living in poverty and sickness, by raising a
fund for them. The generosity of Jesus
is the central theme here also, because Paul describes Jesus’ life, death and
resurrection as “the gracious act of our
Lord Jesus Christ.” Today’s
gospel describes two of our Lord's miracles, the healing of a
woman who suffered from a chronic bleeding disease and the returning of
the dead daughter of Jairus to life. These healings teach us that
Jesus wills life, and wills full life for all God’s children. The two healings also reveal Jesus as a
generous, kind and compassionate God who wills that men should live
their wholesome lives fully. They also give us further proof of the divine
power and the infinite mercy of our Savior. These miracles were worked by Jesus
as reward for the trusting faith of a synagogue ruler and of a woman with a
hemorrhage, although the faith of the ruler may have been defective, and the
woman’s faith may have been a bit superstitious. But Jesus amply rewarded their
defective faith by granting them health and life.
The first reading, Wisdom
1:13-15; 2:23-24, complements the gospel theme by explaining the
origins of evil and death in the world.
In today’s gospel, Jesus revives a dead girl and heals a
chronically-sick woman. We ask the perennial question: "How can a good God
permit evils like poverty, AIDS, holocausts, and terrorist attacks? Today’s
passage from the Book of Wisdom defends the goodness of God, stating, “God
did not make death, nor does He rejoice in the destruction of the
living." Our God is a God of
life, whose will for us is that we should have more abundant life. The
truth that man's real destiny is an unending life with God is stated for the
first time in the Old Testament in the Book of Wisdom. “For
righteousness is immortal. God created
man for incorruption, and made him in the image of His own eternity.” This means that the goal
of our lives is to know, to love and to serve God here, and to share God’s
life forever.
The
second reading, (2 Corinthians 8: 7, 9, 13-15), is
addressed to the Christians in Corinth Saint Paul asked them
to come to the financial aid of a destitute Christian congregation in Palestine Macedonia and Galatia
to the poor in Jerusalem , and he took this
occasion to ask the Gentile converts in Corinth
Exegesis: The
context: In
today's gospel we have what is often called a "Markan sandwich". One
story is encased or sandwiched between the beginning and end of another. Here,
we have an unusual combination of two miracle stories, one contained within the
other – a healing, and a restoration of life.
The story of the woman with the flow of blood
interrupts and is sandwiched in between the two parts of the account of Jairus
and his daughter. These miracles
were worked by Jesus as rewards for the trusting faith of a synagogue ruler and
of a woman with a hemorrhage. Though the
ruler may have trusted Jesus out of desperation and the woman’s faith may have
been a bit superstitious, even their perhaps defective faith was amply
rewarded.
The parallels: The stories have several
common features. One woman is 12 years
old, and the other has suffered for 12 years.
Both are called “daughter,” and both are in need of physical healing. The girl’s father is encouraged to have
faith, and the older woman is praised for her faith. The two stories illustrate Jesus’ power over
both chronic illness and death. In each
healing, Jesus shows his marvelous generosity by giving the recipients life and salvation in
addition to physical healing.
The faith-experiences of Jairus and the sick woman: 1) Jairus: As the ruler
of the synagogue, Jairus was a well-respected man in the local Jewish
community. He was the administrative
head of the synagogue, the president of the board of elders and the one
responsible for the conduct of the services.
He probably shared in the Pharisees’ prejudice that Jesus was a heretic
and a wandering preacher to be avoided.
If so, the urgency of his need and the helplessness of the situation
prompted him to forget his position, to swallow his pride and prejudice and to
seek help from Jesus the wandering wonder worker.
2) The woman with a
hemorrhage: The account
tells of a woman who came to Jesus with expectant faith, as a
last resort, after trying every other cure known in her day. The Mosaic Law in Lev 15: 25-27 declared her
unclean and shut her off from the worship of God and the fellowship of her
friends. That may be why she decided to
try to touch the tassels of Jesus' garment secretly. Jesus, like every other Jew, wore an outer
robe with four tassels on it, one at each corner--the badge of a devout Jew as
prescribed in Num.15:38-40.
The
faith that was rewarded: The woman’s boldness in
touching Jesus' garment -- which, according to the law, made Jesus unclean
-- could have angered him. Further, because her “chronic bleeding
disease” rendered her ritually unclean, any contact she had with others in
the crowd, made them also ritually unclean as well. But her faith in the healing power of Jesus was
so strong that she risked breaking all the social rules to seek what
she believed He could do for her. By
affectionately calling her "daughter," Jesus established a
relationship with her and gave her the assurance that she was healed:
“Daughter, your faith has saved you.
Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.” In addition, she gained a personal
relationship to Jesus as a member of his family (3:35). By trusting in
the power of God and doing His will, she was not only physically cured but
also fully restored to a normal religious and social life. It was her deep faith in Jesus - symbolized
by her touching the tassel of his garment - that was a major factor in her
healing.
The faith that brought back life
from death: As
Jesus sent the woman to her house, Jairus received the shocking news of the
death of his daughter. But Jesus
insisted on going to Jairus’ house and consoled the father saying, "Do
not be afraid; only have faith." The phrase, "Do not be afraid,”
appears in the Bible 366 times. Those
who greeted Jairus at his home were professional mourners who wailed, beat
their breasts, tore their hair, and rent their garments. There were also
flute players who played funeral dirges. The crowd told
Jairus: "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any
further?" (35). But Jesus assured the crowd: "The child
is not dead but sleeping," meaning that the girl's death was only
temporary, and she would wake up at his call.
Jesus took the parents of the little girl with only Peter, James and
John into the room, took the child by the hand and said to her, “'Talitha
koum,' which means, 'Little
girl, get up!’” Those who had
laughed Jesus to scorn must have been greatly amazed when
they realized Jesus' power.
Life messages: # 1: We need to accept God’s call to health,
wholeness and holiness. Jesus
accepts us as we are. Hence, let us
bring before him our bodily illnesses and spiritual wounds and ask for his
healing touch. We should pray for
healing which will give us health in every aspect of our lives – not just in
our bodies – so that we may function in perfect harmony with people around
us and with the environment. As Christians, we believe that Jesus continues to
heal us through his instruments in the medical profession, like doctors, nurses
and medical technicians. Hence, when we go to a doctor, we need to offer a
prayer to Christ The Divine Healer
that we may choose the right doctor, and that s/he may make the correct
diagnosis, prescribe the correct treatment and give us the right medicine. Let
us not forget the truth that, over, above and beyond the ability and skill of
the greatest human healer, Christ still works wonders of healing. Let us also thank God for the great gift of
health and use it for helping those who are sick.
#2: We need to continue the healing mission of the Church:
As members of the Church, we are not excused from our vocation to be
healers. When a friend of ours is
terminally ill, the skill of the doctors and their advanced medical tools often
become powerless. What the patient needs
in such a situation is our care, concern and prayerful presence, enabling them
to experience through us the love, compassion and mercy of Jesus. We do our
share of Christ’s healing mission by visiting the sick, by praying for their
healing and by boosting their morale through our loving presence, encouragement
and inspiration.
#3: We need to have trusting
faith in the mercy and divine power of Jesus: The primary condition
for the effectiveness of our prayer is our faith in the goodness and mercy
of God. Such a faith is possible only if we remain related to
God through prayer, the sacraments, and a meditative study of
the Bible. Every day we should say
a fervent prayer of thanksgiving to God for the gift of active faith. Let us keep in mind this wise piece of advice
given by St. Ignatius of Loyola: “We must work as if everything depends on us,
but we must pray as if everything depends on God.”
JOKES OF THE WEEK # 1: Healed by laughing: "A cheerful heart is
good medicine" (Proverbs 17:22).
In the 1300's, surgeon Henri de Mondeville reportedly told jokes to his
patients in the recovery room. Laughter exercises the face, shoulders,
diaphragm, and abdomen. When the
breathing deepens, the heart rate rises, and the blood takes up and transports
more oxygen. Endorphins are released, pain
thresholds are raised, and some studies suggest that even our immune systems
are boosted. When we laugh, others laugh
too. Laughter is a contagious, highly
effective, non-prescription medicine. It
has no side effects, and no one is allergic to it. Have we had our dose of laughter today? We can use the tool of humor to induce
laughter for our health, healing and general sense of well-being. We can even spend time in daily practicing
our laughing out loud – maybe by smiling first, then leaning into a giggle, and
then in outright belly laughs!
# 2: A deaf man, a blind man and a disabled man heard a rumor that God had come
down to a church in the village to heal the sick. They all went to find out if it was
true. God signed to the deaf man, "Can
I help you, son?" The man signed
back that he would be so happy if he could hear again. God touched the man and suddenly he could
hear. God then touched the blind man and
he was able to see. The third man was
sitting in his wheelchair with his mouth wide open in amazement. God looked at the man and asked him what he
wanted.
The man drew back and yelled, "Don't lay one finger on me! I'm on disability!"
The man drew back and yelled, "Don't lay one finger on me! I'm on disability!"
# 3: A pastor joke:
One Sunday at Mass as the priest was giving his homily, a little baby in
the front row suddenly started crying loudly.
The mother did her best to pacify the child but nothing worked. So finally she got up and started to walk
down the aisle to take the baby into the cry room. The priest stopped his preaching, and very
compassionately called out to the mother, "That's OK! You don't have to leave. The child isn't disturbing me." The young woman turned around and said,
"No, pardon me Father, but you're disturbing my child!"
WEBSITES OF THE WEEK
1) Liturgy links: http://www.theology.ie/liturgy.htm
3) Catholicism: http://catholicism.about.com/
4) Fr. Pat’s place:
http://www.frpat.com/
5) Chastity Talks to
Teenagers: http://www.chastity.com/
Additional
anecdotes
1)"Aren't
you glad I walk with the Lord, Earl?" Pat Kelly, a major league
outfielder in the '70s, was a born-again Christian. One day Pat said to his
manager, Earl Weaver, "Aren't you glad I walk with the Lord, Earl?"
Weaver replied, "I'd rather you walked with the bases loaded." When
one football coach was asked about his offensive team's execution he replied,
"I'm all for it." Sports are popular because they are a metaphor for
our life experience. You win some, you lose some. Sometimes you feel like the
champion of the world. Sometimes you just feel beaten up. "I'm sometimes
up and I'm sometimes down," says the old spiritual, "sometimes I'm
almost to the ground." And we've been there. And so have the people who
trek across the pages of our Bible. Our lesson for today is about two people
who felt beaten up. One was a righteous Jew named Jairus whose daughter was
dying. The other heartsick person in our story is a woman who had been ill for
twelve years with an issue of blood.
2) “The
child is not dead but asleep." Martin
College in Pulaski , Tennessee
3) Physical
touch made the difference: The Menninger Institute in Topeka , Kansas
4) Each
patient carries his own doctor inside himself. : The great
missionary physician, Dr. Albert Schweitzer, said it simply and realistically,
"Each patient carries his own doctor inside himself. They come to us
[physicians] not knowing that truth. We are best when we give the doctor who
resides within each patient a chance to work." Are you giving the
"doctor who resides" within you the chance to work? Are you giving
the "doctor who resides" within your spouse, your child, your
significant other, the chance to work? Here is a little self-administered test
from a study by Dr. Carl Simonton. Answer these questions, yes or no. Do you have
a tendency to hold resentment? Yes or no. Would you rather carry a grudge than
forgive? Yes or no. Would you rather cry in self-pity than invite a friend out
for dinner? Yes or no. Do you have a problem developing and maintaining
long-term relationships? Yes or no. Do you have a low self image? Yes or no. If
you answer with more "yeses," by Dr. Simonton's test study, you are
not giving the "doctor who resides within" you the best chance to
work. A "yes" means you are most vulnerable to illness. (Adapted from
Bruce Larson, There is a Lot More to
Health Than Not Being Sick, pp. 138-139.)
5) Jesus
Christ the healer: There was a television program hosted by Barbara
Walters sometime back, on which she interviewed three celebrities: Johnny
Carson, Johnny Cash, and Walter Cronkite. According to one viewer, Johnny
Carson came across as the typical jaded playboy hedonist. Everything he said
telegraphed the fact that he was living for pleasure, but, having tried
everything and been everywhere he was fed up with the whole thing. Walter
Cronkite was the suave humanist, the worldly philosopher. Now retired and
wealthy, he was enjoying life as best he could. He was looking at life rather
philosophically, but all he really was saying was, "That's the way it
is!" Johnny Cash, on the other hand, admitted his background of alcoholism
and drug addiction and the fact that he had virtually destroyed a marriage and
wrecked his life. But he openly said he had found Jesus. There was peace in his
eyes and contentment in his voice. He spoke of a hope for the future which
neither of the others had. http://www.pbc.org/dp/stedman/john/3848.html).
No doctor could have healed Johnny Cash. Only Christ could do that. Only Christ
can heal a broken marriage. Only Christ can heal broken relationships within a
family. Only Christ can give us hope when everyone else is telling us that
there is no hope to be found. Only Christ can deliver us from sin.
6) “He is
Jesus Christ” : Lloyd Ogilvie, former pastor of Hollywood
Presbyterian Church and a popular speaker and writer, once spoke at a large
convention. The woman who introduced him began by saying, "We have a very
unusual privilege tonight. In our midst is without a doubt the world's finest communicator.
He is extremely sensitive, alert, compassionate and wise. He can sense a
person's true needs immediately and speak just the right word to heal a
hurt." Dr. Ogilvie later confessed that he felt both flattered and
frightened. How could he live up to all that? He didn't have to. For as the
woman came to the end, she said, "We are in for a tremendous experience
tonight because this supreme lover of people is in our midst. Who is He? He is
Jesus Christ. And now here is a man named Lloyd Ogilvie who will tell us about
Him" (Rev. Dave Wilkinson). Jesus
is the supreme lover of people. "He can sense a person's true needs
immediately and speak just the right word to heal a hurt."
7) The
Sequoia trees of California
8) Healing
touch: Studies at the University of California-Los Angeles Medical
Center; Menninger Foundation, Topeka, Kansas; and Scott and White Clinic,
Temple, Texas, have shown that hugging communicates tenderness, gentleness,
caring-ness all those characteristics that are essential for healing both body
and soul. Hugging, they say, relieves many physical and emotional problems,
helps people live longer, maintains health, relieves stress and promotes sleep.
The studies also show that hemoglobin, the portion of blood that carries
oxygen, increases significantly when people are touched. There's your answer
for those who say the Peace Exchange is artificial! And it certainly gives
husbands and wives, parents and children, and significant others good reason to
hug and hug and hug! Jesus believed in the touch. Jesus practiced the sacrament
of touching with his hands. He even says that when someone touched him,
believing, he knew power and virtue went out of him. Let's remember that. It's
a good reason to keep human touch on a high level. Keep in touch with Jesus by
faith and you'll feel power and newness flowing into and through you. There is
healing in the touch!
9) “It was
a good day for me”: There is a story about the fourth-century Greek
“Cynic Philosopher,” Diogenes of Sinilope. On a voyage to Aegina, he was
captured by pirates and sold as a slave in Crete .
As he gazed at the bystanders who were bidding for him, he looked at a man and
told the pirate chief, “Sell me to that man because he needs a master.” The man
who bought him was a Corinthian by name Xeniades. “What is your trade?” asked Xeniades. “The only trade I know is that of governing
men by teaching them the art of virtuous self-control,” replied Diogenes. Xeniades was so impressed by his
philosopher-slave that he promptly handed over to him the management of his
household and the education of his children.
“It was a good day for me,” Xeniades used to tell his friends, “when
Diogenes entered my household.” Jairus,
the father of the girl Jesus raised from death, as described in today’s gospel,
must have given a better compliment to Jesus in expressing his commitment to
Jesus and faith in his divinity.
10)
"What is the
healthiest hour of the week?" : Dr. Granger Westberg, the
founder of Wholistic Medicine, Inc., Chicago ,
Illinois
11) Christians are called to be
compassionate, “wounded healers.”
Perhaps Henri Nouwen, the Catholic theologian, has said this better than anyone else. The author of many books, Nouwen speaks of Christians as "wounded healers" who have compassion. Compassion is not pity. Pity lets us stay at a distance. It is condescending. Compassion is not sympathy. Sympathy is for superiors over inferiors. Compassion is not charity. Charity is for the rich to continue in their status over the poor. Compassion is born of God. It means entering into the other person's problems. It means taking on the burdens of the other. It means standing in the other person's shoes. It is the opposite of professionalism. It is the humanizing way to deal with people. "Just as bread without love can bring war instead of peace, professionalism without compassion will turn forgiveness into a gimmick."
Perhaps Henri Nouwen, the Catholic theologian, has said this better than anyone else. The author of many books, Nouwen speaks of Christians as "wounded healers" who have compassion. Compassion is not pity. Pity lets us stay at a distance. It is condescending. Compassion is not sympathy. Sympathy is for superiors over inferiors. Compassion is not charity. Charity is for the rich to continue in their status over the poor. Compassion is born of God. It means entering into the other person's problems. It means taking on the burdens of the other. It means standing in the other person's shoes. It is the opposite of professionalism. It is the humanizing way to deal with people. "Just as bread without love can bring war instead of peace, professionalism without compassion will turn forgiveness into a gimmick."
12) Transformer of sufferings into a
life with purpose: Once the people of Chile
and Argentina Andes
Mountains
13) "That's
it!" "That's what, Leigh?" Tim Hansel tells about a
special friend of his who suffers from severe cerebral palsy. She telephoned
Tim one day and asked, "What does it mean for a horse to be
handicapped!?" Tim answered, "Well, Leigh, they usually handicap the
strongest horse by adding a little extra weight to make the race more
fair." "Yeah, I know!" said Leigh. "Then what does it mean
if you handicap a golfer?" Tim said, "The better the golfer, the
larger the handicap." "Yeah, I know!" Leigh said again.
"And what does it mean . . ." They explored a number of sports with
the same conclusion. There was a long pause. Finally Leigh said, "That's
it!" "That's what, Leigh?" Tim asked. "That's it!"
Leigh said, "That's why God gave me such a big handicap . . . because I'm
so special!" [Keep On Dancin',
(Colorado Springs, CO.: Chariot Family Publishing, 1995), p. 110.] To a great
extent life is a matter of chance willed by God. A certain number of people
will be stricken with cerebral palsy. Leigh just happened to be among the
unlucky. God does not choose people to suffer from problems like cerebral
palsy.
14) "Your faith has made you well." The advent of
genuinely science-based medicine at the dawn of the 20th-century had, we
thought, reduced illness to a collection of bothersome bacteria and other
microscopic marauders. Being sick was no longer anyone's "fault"; it
was no longer a sign of weakness, sin or divine displeasure. Sickness was
brought on by outside invaders that broke down our body's natural defenses. We
had only to find the right "magic bullet," we thought, and all ills
could be cured. Now, everything is our own fault again. Our inability to handle
stress effectively clamps down our colon. A love affair with cream cheese and
pepperoni pizza clogs our arteries. Curling up with a good book instead of
hitting the stair-master has made our muscle tone horribly off-key and our
cardiovascular system out of breath. Everything that operates at a less than
perfect level is held up to us as evidence of yet another sin we have committed
in our lives. When Jesus' healing power brought the miracle of health to the
hemorrhaging woman in this week's gospel text, he immediately sought her out to
speak with her about her experience. Impressed by the power of her faith, Jesus
proclaims, "Your faith has made you well."
Furthermore, Jesus adds a standard Jewish blessing "Go in peace."
15) She
never realized the miracle of her life when she was living it.
Thornton Wilder wrote a play titled Our Town. When Emily Webb comes back
from the dead to the town of her childhood, she finds all her long-dead
acquaintances alive and her mother and father, too. The town is still the same as
she remembers it when she was a child. Except for one thing.
The sheer beauty and wonder of everything she sees is overwhelming. Every sight
and sound, every gesture of love, each tender grace between friends is almost
too much for her to bear. She had never realized the miracle of her life when
she was living it. Faith is
strengthened through the pleasure that comes from remembering the miracle
stories. But not just that. When we choose faith over
control, we have a much better chance of experiencing those miracles of God's
grace all around us right now.
16) "I
decided long ago that there are no strangers in my world”: One of my
favorite authors today is a professor at Loyola
University in Chicago
1. Announcement for FORTNIGHT FOR FREEDOM: http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/religious-liberty/fortnight-for-freedom/
2. The Most Cherished of American Freedoms (http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/religious-liberty/conscience-protection/upload/April-May-USCCB-Religious-Liberty-Bulletin-Insert-ENG.pdf)
3. Link to website: Please write your to congressmen and senators (http://nchla.org/actiondisplay.asp?ID=292)
4. Twelve Things Everyone Should Know About the “Contraceptive Mandate” (http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/religious-liberty/conscience-protection/upload/Twelve-Things-Everyone-Should-Know-About-the-Contraceptive-Mandate.pdf)
Fr Tony can you update you homilies. thank you.
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