BEADS OF JOY 01-30-18
“I Say To You, Arise”
©2018 James Dacey, Jr. OFS
Today’s Gospel: Mark 5:21-43
(Jairus’ Daughter & The Woman with a Hemorrhage)
“And
when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd
gathered about him; and he was beside the sea. Then came one of the rulers of
the synagogue, Jairus by name; and seeing him, he fell at his feet, and begged
him, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay
your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live." And he went
with him. And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. And there was
a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much
under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but
rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him
in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, "If I touch even his garments,
I shall be made well." And immediately the hemorrhage ceased; and she felt
in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in
himself that power had gone forth from him, immediately turned about in the
crowd, and said, "Who touched my garments?" And his disciples said to
him, "You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, `Who touched
me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing
what had been done to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him,
and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith
has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your disease."
While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" But ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not fear, only believe." And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. When they came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, he saw a tumult, and people weeping and wailing loudly. And when he had entered, he said to them, "Why do you make a tumult and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping." And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. Taking her by the hand he said to her, "Talitha cumi"; which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise." And immediately the girl got up and walked (she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them that no one should know this and told them to give her something to eat.”
While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" But ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not fear, only believe." And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. When they came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, he saw a tumult, and people weeping and wailing loudly. And when he had entered, he said to them, "Why do you make a tumult and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping." And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. Taking her by the hand he said to her, "Talitha cumi"; which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise." And immediately the girl got up and walked (she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them that no one should know this and told them to give her something to eat.”
Reflection:
I have a question: The little girl who was healed in today’s gospel, she did eventually die, right? So, with that in mind, we can be healed and still die, eventually. So, that family and that little girl and all those people rejoiced in her healing, still knowing that inevitably one day, she would still die. So then, healing here in this life, is a healing that is for, but a moment of time; this healing here and now, does not grant us eternal life amongst the living, it only helps us to live longer while we are here. Hmmm, sorry I am thinking out loud. So, if we are to understand that, maybe just maybe, we would give witness to more healing in our lives and in the lives of others.
I won’t get into all the details
of the past too much, because there has been so much healing, but here and now
it needs to be said. Chrissy was Diagnosed May 2010 and our world was turned
upside down. Sarah (17 y/o at the time)
was the oldest and I was working 60-70-hours a week (night shift) and taking care of Chrissy and the kids; so, with
Sarah being the oldest I relied heavily upon her. Once Chrissy started getting chemo
which was almost immediately, she was wiped out. Chemo affects all the long bones
in your body, so Chrissy had challenges walking and using her arms the weeks
she had chemo, it took her a week to recover. She had chemo every other week.
All of this is the back story. This last sentence is the killer. On January 2,
2011, Sarah (now 18 y/o) packed up
and left home, we didn’t see her for nearly 3 years.
Yes, a truly most difficult
crushing blow to our already suffering family; I can’t even begin to explain
the pain, the anger and the hatred toward the family that helped her to do
this. Well, let’s put all that aside. This is all about healing. Let’s fast forward
the clock to July 2013. I got a text from the people who helped Sarah, saying
she left them. (during these 3 years,
Sarah barely communicated with us and we got together with her maybe twice) I
was just starting my shift at work when I got that text. My boss knew all about
the stress I was under. I immediately said, “I can’t work tonight I have to go find my daughter.” He said GO!! I immediately went to the Police
Station in that area where she lived, and I asked for help; incredibly, remarkably
after sharing the text with the officer, he helped me. And YES, I found her. I
confirmed her whereabouts and I raced home, got Chrissy and we went to see our
Sarah together. Talk about a miracle
reunion, with all the tears and all the hugs. It was incredible. But Sarah
wasn’t ready to come home yet.
Pondering these thoughts today: Yeah, this was a lot of drama, but through all of this we never gave up hope and we never excluded Sarah in anything, even without her home. During this very sad time of not having our only daughter home, Chrissy made Sarah things, bought Sarah things and she continued to include her in our plans as if she was here. Within a few months of that very emotional reunion, Sarah dropped by our home; I was home, this was after I had my 2 strokes, she asked if she can come back home. We all cried again, and we said YES of cause. She apologized and said she was very sorry for hurting us and she was wrong for doing what she did. We forgave her and moved on. From that point on Sarah and Chrissy became inseparable, except of cause when it was the 3 of us and when Sarah went back to work. But the greatest part of the healing was, that Sarah and Chrissy bonded again and spent so much time together, making up for lost time, doing girlie things. And Sarah was here for Chrissy’s last few minutes of life. I am thankful that God brought this healing into our lives, we all needed it badly, especially Chrissy and Sarah. So, even though a wonderful joyful healing came into our lives, we all knew sorrow would follow. But the healing, softened the pain greatly. Thank you, Lord.
LOVE YOU GUYS !!!!
Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS
Today is Tuesday: We pray the Sorrowful Mysteries:
The Sorrowful Mysteries
1. Agony on the Garden (Sorrow for sin) –Matt 26:36-46
2. Scourging at the Pillar (Purity) –Mark 15:1-16
3. Crowning with Thorns (Moral Courage) –Matt 27:27-31
4. Carrying of the Cross (Patience) –Mark 15:20-22
5. The Crucifixion (Perseverance) –Luke 23:33-46
Thank you Lord for loving us so much…
Rosary Man Jim’s Sorrowful Reflection: http://beads-of-joy-blog.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-sorrowful-mysteries_11.html
