13th Sunday in Ordinary Time: A Lamp in the Darkness

It's interesting to keep our eyes on Jairus during the reading of today's long Gospel. It begins with the synagogue official's desperate plea for Jesus to come and heal his 12 year-old daughter, who is dying. As they are on the way to Jairus's house, Jesus gets detained (one could argue unnecessarily). Yet Jesus allows himself to be detailed so that he can dialogue with this woman who had been healed by touching his cloak. In the meantime, Jairus's household sends word that his daughter has indeed died. Jesus has a plan for Jairus through all of this, and it does include raising his daughter from the dead, but it also includes a lot of walking with Jesus through the darkness as we do not understand what He is doing. Pope Francis says that faith is not a light that scatters all of the darkness but rather a lamp that accompanies us faithfully through the darkness. May we learn to ask for the healing we desire and to trust during the ensuing darkness!