A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 5:21-43)
When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he went in and said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”
When Jesus again crosses to the other side of the sea, he is immediately surrounded by a large crowd. Jairus, a synagogue leader, pleads with Jesus to heal his dying daughter. As Jesus follows Jairus, a woman approaches him who has had hemorrhages for twelve years. When she touches his cloak, she is healed immediately. On arriving at Jairus’s house, Jesus hears that the girl has already died, but he encourages Jairus not to be afraid to have faith. Inside the house, Jesus takes the girl’s hand and says to her, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” Immediately, the girl rises and walks, leaving everyone astounded. Mark tells us that the mother and father of the little girl were present in the room with Jesus. What fear and anguish they must have felt; yet, in that moment, Jesus asks for one vital thing—their faith.
God, help me recall the words of Jesus throughout the day: “The child is not dead but asleep.” How many times today will faith in you, not my own will, be necessary? “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” How many times through lack of faith will I deem something lost, of no account—dead? Give me the grace to know that you, the God of the living, have power over life and death and that despite what I might believe, your will has a heartbeat every second of the day. On being ridiculed, Jesus drove people out of the house for their lack of faith. Keep me in your care, Lord; accept the little faith I have. As you asked that the girl be given something to eat, give me the grace to receive and take in your word.
From the responsorial psalm: “Have mercy on me, O Lord, for to you I call all the day. Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. Listen, Lord, and answer me.”
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.