Sunday July 2nd, 2000 |
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13th Sunday in Ordinary Time Mark 5:21-43 |
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| Background: This Sunday’s long gospel selection contains two stories, each of which tell of the rewards of strong faith, both faith publicly expressed and the quiet faith of which only the believer and God are aware. Jairus, though a Jewish official, publicly expresses his belief that Jesus can save his dying daughter when he begs him to come save her. The woman in the crowd is silent about her hope that Jesus could heal her. Both are rewarded because they believed. Mark tells this story within a story as an episode in Jesus’ life that demonstrates the importance of the faith of a believer and Jesus’ ability to reward that faith.
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read the padre |
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Story: Once upon a time there was a queen of a small country. The king of that country seemed very unapproachable. Actually, he loved the people in his kingdom but was rather shy and had been taught that kings should appear distant to their subjects. However, all the people in the kingdom knew that the queen had a kind heart and would help anyone who was in need. One day, the wife of one of the king’s ministers came to the queen with tears in her eyes. The minister’s little daughter had been badly hurt in an accident and needed some special treatment that could only be obtained in another country. The minister was afraid to ask the king’s permission to take his daughter for the treatment. The queen had been unaware of the little girl’s injury and had not known of the treatment available in the other country. The queen told the mother not to worry. She would speak with the king and she would accompany the mother and daughter when they went for the treatment. As the queen hurried to her husband to tell him of her plans, she happened to notice a mother with a small ball in her arms. The small boy had the same injury as the little girl. So the queen approached the mother and invited her to journey with them to the kingdom where this affliction could be cured. Of course, the king who loved his wife did not refuse her request. In fact, he began to look for ways that he might be more aware of the needs of his subjects. |
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