19 September 2017
Tuesday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Jesus healed the only son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17). The corpse was being carried out of the city on a stretcher to be buried. Jesus saw the funeral procession and the widow and had pity on them, and he said to the widow: “Do not weep.” And to the dead man he said “Young man, I tell you, arise!”
As you read the gospel passage, you get the impression that the people of Nain had no idea what was about to happen. There is no mention of the widow asking Jesus for help, nor is there any dialogue between Jesus and the people of the town. He was simply approaching the town with his disciples when he saw the funeral procession, and felt pity, and performed a stupefying miracle.
For those of us who have active prayer lives, the passage is sobering. We spend countless hours before our God in prayer, and yet we receive favors of lesser distinction. Yet this woman, this widow of Nain, as far as we know, was more or less oblivious to Jesus and everything he stood for. It remains God’s prerogative to help whom He pleases in the manner He pleases. It is not God’s job to please us. It is our job to please him. Yes, God wants us to be happy with Him, however, our happiness comes more from seeking His glory than having his favors.