Made For Life
“For he fashioned all things that they might have being.
For God formed man to be imperishable; the image of his own nature he made him. But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world,
and they who belong to his company experience it.”
Wisdom 1:14a; 2:23-24
Death was never God’s plan for human beings. In being made in the image and likeness of God, and since God is Life, human beings were made for life, a life that does not end. However, because of sin, death entered into the world. But, in the fullness of time, God sent His Son into the world so that this Life might once again be restored.
Because life is a gift from God and because all life was fashioned by God, to be rid of it means to be rid of God. That is why the Church (in the US at least) has always emphasized the right to life — no to abortion, no to capital punishment, no to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, and no to artificial means to conception. All of those aforementioned “no’s” deny the “gift” aspect of life. In Catholic Social Teaching we are told that the right to life is the most fundamental human right. Even the Declaration of Independence echoes this, that all persons are entitled to rights and chief among them are that of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” By our nature, we strive to live. We have to always support this striving for living. If someone says “I no longer want to live,” it is contrary to our very human nature to reply, “Well, if that is really what you want, then, you should die.” Sadly, our world has come to this with the legal “protection” for people to engage in physician-assisted suicide. Truly, as Pope St. John Paul II has said, we are living in the midst of a “culture of death.”
In the Gospel we see a very different picture. Instead of succumbing to euthanasia to alleviate his daughter’s pain and affliction, the synagogue official Jairus, pleads with Jesus to heal his daughter who was “at the point of death.” Even as his daughter was close to death, Jairus fought for her life because that is what humans were made for — life! Although we know that as they were making their way to the house, Jairus’s daughter died, Jesus continued on because He has come to give us life and life to the full. Even when all seems lost, Jesus fights for us. He comes to us. He breathes life into us once again just as He did for Jairus’s daughter, who lived.
The woman who was suffering from hemorrhaging for 12 years heard that Jesus was in town and she immediately followed, hoping to get close to Him so that she might be cured. Think about that. Bleeding for 12 years? I do not think I could even bear that for a week! Yet, she chose to fight for her life. Twelve years. She went to different doctors, but nothing, no cure at all; in fact, things got worse. But, she did not give up. When she touched the hem of Jesus’s garment, she was cured. When we come to encounter Jesus in an intimate, personal way, there will be healing, but we must desire it and at times, we must fight for it.
The one thing in common in both of these healings is the element of faith. Jairus believed that Jesus could heal his daughter and so, even as a synagogue official and perhaps ignoring the complaints and jeers of some Jewish leaders, he went to look for Jesus to heal his daughter. When his daughter’s condition worsened, Jesus encouraged Jairus, “Do not be afraid; just have faith” and he did. Jairus, knowing that the man before him could heal his daughter, believed and kept the faith. The woman who suffered tremendously in life seized the opportunity when it came, pursuing Jesus in the hopes of being healed, and it was granted unto her, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.” In the end, life prevailed. The woman and Jairus’s daughter were made for life, and as long as they were willing and desired it, the Lord of Life will always grant it to them.
Brothers and sisters, do we know and believe that we were made for life? Do we have faith that Jesus has come to give us life and life to the full? What are those areas in our lives that are dead or dying? Maybe it is resentment, a grudge, past hurt, unforgiveness, doubt, anger. Whatever it may be, we must remember that we were made for life. We must seek to live and strive for life. Let us invite Jesus into those parts of our lives that need healing and resurrection, and ask Him to give us the desire to grow deeper in faith so that like Jairus’s daughter and the woman with the hemorrhages, we too might be cured of our afflictions and can live in peace.
