29 June 2024 – 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) (Sunset Mass)

by Fr Fabian Dicom

I’ve probably given this scenario before, probably during my class or some formation programme but I will ask you to imagine this again.

So you are on the way to church to attend the ONLY Mass for the weekend. Anyway just for your information, there are more than 22 over Masses on the Island over the weekend, from Saturday evening till Sunday evening. You are spoilt for choices.

So anyway you did not make it to the 21 Masses. You got just one and the last Mass. And you were told by your catechism teacher if you miss the Mass, it is a grave sin and you will go to hell.

So just then you witness an accident and you see persons injured. Now this happens in one of the lanes in Island Park, not on the main road. So  no one is there, no one is rushing to aid anyone. You alone.

What do you do?

What do you do? Do you stop or do you still have to come to church because church is very important? Probably you are the commentator, you may be the lector or you could even be the Deacon or the Priest? I don’t know. Would you come or would you stop to help? This is just a question.

Another scene, not going to church but this job interview that is most important. It will define your career. What would you do?

Now I had an experience many years ago in BM, Bukit Mertajam. I was going there for a programme to talk about compassion, to talk about the poor, etc and I was driving into BM town and I saw an accident.

Did I stop? No.

And I saw the person struggling but there was someone to help but I thought somebody behind would do that. I felt very, very bad about it. I felt like a hypocrite going there and talking about caring and showing compassion when I did not stop. I would have been late for my programme but I did not stop. So I kind of shared my experience to the people there, hoping to get some absolution from them. It reminded me about the priest in the story of the Good Samaritan.

Now some of you may have experienced this. Just getting ready to go for an important meeting or a dinner arrangement and you hear: “Ma, I fell down.“”I’ve a stomach ache.” And you drop everything.

This can happen to anyone, to parents, to caregivers, to social workers. Even to people in the ministry, in the church because you are bent on getting everything done and there is a interruption. It can happen to you and to me.

Now this evening I want to talk about interruptions in our lives, in the context of our Gospel today.

It often happens when we have a plan in mind, we set out to accomplish it with a sense of purpose and determination. Then unexpectedly someone comes along and interrupts us. This interruption can delay our progress, causing us to miss the timing we had in mind to do our tasks.

And in these moments, in these moments, it is easy to feel a bit frustrated and impatient as we might be eager to get back to what we think we are supposed to be doing. We might find ourselves silently wishing for the person to move on quickly, to stop talking so that we can resume our activities. I must admit I can be like that myself at times.

But over the years, over the years I have come to understand, in this ministry I’m called to, that every encounter is in some way providential. What might initially appear to be an interruption can be exactly where we are meant to be. The person who unexpectedly crosses my path, potentially disrupting my plans, might be the very person the Lord has sent into my life. Instead of viewing such encounters as interruptions, it is often more fruitful to see them as moments of grace and opportunities.

What I had intended to do may not be what is most important. Rather the true call of the present moment, like right now, may lie in the person who stands before me right now. And I have numerous experiences of this all through my life. And I can remember there were times when I am at the lowest, needing this, even questioning where I am as a priest. And then I get affirmed when I am called to administer the Sacrament. When there is a need to respond to someone in need. And it affirms this call and it takes me out of this state that I have been experiencing.

I was reminded of all that by today’s Gospel Reading.

Now one of the synagogue official, Jairus, pleaded with Jesus to come to his daughter who was desperately sick. Jesus set out with him on this every important journey. On the way to the house of Jairus, Jesus had an encounter with a woman which delayed him. An interruption.

It took up precious time yet Jesus did not react angrily to this interruption. He did not dismiss her. Instead, the contrary was the case.

To appreciate this whole story, we need to understand the context and who this person was. For 12 years, she had suffered from a condition that not only caused her physical pain but also made her ritually unclean according to the Jewish law. When you have this kind of ailment, that meant she was ostracised from her community, living a life of isolation and rejection. Not even allowed in the temple.

Yet she shows remarkable courage and faith by reaching out to touch Jesus’ cloak, believing that even this small act could bring her healing. When the woman touches Jesus’ cloak, she is healed instantly. When Jesus notices that power had gone out from him because the woman touched his clothing, he stopped, turned around in the crowd and said: Who touched my clothing?

He wanted to meet this woman. Now in spite of the urgency of the journey on which he had set out, Jesus does not let her slip away unnoticed. He stops and seeks her out, giving her the dignity of being seen and heard. I repeat: He stops and seeks her out, giving her the dignity of being seen and heard.

Eventually the woman came forward, frightened and trembling, not knowing what to expect. Jesus addressed her in a very tender terms: My Daughter” he said, “your faith has restored you to health.“

By calling her ‘daughter‘, Jesus not only heals her physically but also restores her to her community, acknowledging her worth and place among God’s people. That is very important.
He seeks her out, He sees her, He hears her and restores her.

He engaged her in a very personal way. He called her into a personal relationship with him. This was the task of the moment.

Some people would have seen this encounter as an unfortunate interruption because as a result of the delay, Jairus’ daughter had died before Jesus could get to the house. Yet, for Jesus, this encounter with the woman was of ultimate significance.

It was a moment of grace. It was a prelude, an introduction to even more wonderful moment of grace in the house of Jairus. And Jesus reassures Jairus: Do not fear. Only believe.

When Jesus arrives at Jairus’ house, he raises the girl from the dead, restoring her to life and reuniting her with her family. Now this aligns with the passage from the First Reading, from Wisdom, which states that God did not make death. He desires that life and health of His creation. God’s original intent is for wholeness, not suffering and death.

So the Gospel teaches us to embrace life’s interruptions. What seems like a distraction can be where God calls us. When plans go awry, it may open space for unexpected but valuable opportunities. I believe you can even relate to this. 

Jesus exemplifies this by fully engaging with the woman who touched his garment, showing that attending to interruptions can be part of doing God’s work without neglecting other important tasks.

Our Second Reading from Saint Paul’s letter to the Corinthians encourages the community, all of us, to excel in faith and love, emphasising generosity and equality. 

This reflects God’s desire for you and for me to alleviate suffering. That is our task. We are called to do that, to preserve dignity of persons around us, to help restore them, to be part of the community.

As we reflect on these miraculous healings, let us also consider how we can be agents of healing and justice in our own communities.

How can we reach out to those who are suffering, who are marginalised or isolated?

How can we create spaces where people feel seen, people feel heard and people feel loved?

In a world that often values independence and self-reliance, today’s Gospel calls us to a different way of being. And are we ready to embrace that?

It invites us to recognise our interconnectedness even in our interruptions and to lean on each other in faith.

Whether we are like Jairus, advocating for a loved one, or like the woman seeking healing for ourselves, we are reminded that we do not walk this journey alone.

When we set out on a journey, my dear brothers and sisters, what happens on the way, what happens on the way can be more important than arriving at our destination.

May we have the courage to reach out in faith, the compassion to support one another and the trust to believe in God’s power to heal and transform our lives.

Amen.

Click below to listen to homily and watch video:-

Click to live-stream Mass on 29 June 2024