Sunday, June 27
Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Roman Ordinary calendar
Book of Wisdom 1,13-15.2,23-24.
Because God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.
For he fashioned all things that they might have being; and the creatures of the world are wholesome, And there is not a destructive drug among them nor any domain of the nether world on earth,
For justice is undying.
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 are in his possession experience it.
Psalms 30(29),2.4.5-6.11.12a.13b.
I will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear
and did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O LORD, you brought me up from the nether world;
you preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
Sing praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger lasts but a moment;
a lifetime, his good will.
At nightfall, weeping enters in,
but with the dawn, rejoicing.
Hear, O LORD, and have pity on me;
O LORD, be my helper.”
You changed my mourning into dancing;
O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.
Second Letter to the Corinthians 8,7.9.13-15.
Brothers and sisters: as you excel in every respect, in faith, discourse, knowledge, all earnestness, and in the love we have for you, may you excel in this gracious act also.
For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although he was rich, so that by his poverty you might become rich.
not that others should have relief while you are burdened, but that as a matter of equality
your surplus at the present time should supply their needs, so that their surplus may also supply your needs, that there may be equality.
As it is written: “Whoever had much did not have more, and whoever had little did not have less.”
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 5,21-43.
When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea.
One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him he fell at his feet
and pleaded earnestly with him, saying, “My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live.”
He went off with him, and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon him.
There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak.
She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.”
Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?”
But his disciples said to him, “You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?'”
And he looked around to see who had done it.
The woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth.
He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.”
While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official’s house arrived and said, “Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?”
Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.”
He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James.
When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.
So he went in and said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”
And they ridiculed him. Then he put them all out. He took along the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and entered the room where the child was.
He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!”
The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around. (At that) they were utterly astounded.
He gave strict orders that no one should know this and said that she should be given something to eat.
Reflection by Pope Benedict XVI at the Angelus on 1 July 2012
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
This Sunday, the Evangelist Mark presents to us the account of two miraculous cures which Jesus worked for two women: the daughter of one of the elders of the synagogue whose name was Jairus, and a woman who was suffering from a haemorrhage (cf. Mk 5:21-43). These two episodes can be interpreted at two levels; the purely physical — Jesus bends over human suffering and heals the body; and the spiritual level: Jesus came to heal human hearts, to give salvation, and asks for faith in him.
In the first episode, in fact, on hearing that Jairus’ little daughter was dead, Jesus tells the ruler of the Synagogue. “Do not fear, only believe” (v. 36). He takes the child’s father with him to the room where the child is lying and exclaims: “Little girl, I say to you, arise” (v. 41). And she rose and walked.
St Jerome commented on these words, underlining Jesus’ saving power: “Little girl, stand up for my sake, not for your own merit but for my grace. Therefore get up for me: being healed does not depend on your own virtues (Homily on the Gospel according to Mark, 3).
The second episode, that of the woman with the haemorrhage, highlights once again that Jesus came to save the human being in his totality. Indeed, the miracle takes place in two phases: first comes the physical healing, but this is closely linked with the deeper healing, the healing which God’s grace gives to those who open themselves to him with faith. Jesus says to the woman: “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease” (Mk 5:34).
These two stories of healing invite us to go beyond a purely horizontal and materialistic vision of life. We ask God to heal so many problems, our practical needs, and this is right, but what we must ask him for insistently is an ever firmer faith, so that the Lord may renew our life, as well as firm trust in his love, in his Providence that never abandons us.
Jesus who is attentive to human suffering also makes us think of all those who help the sick to carry their cross, particularly doctors, health-care workers and all the people who guarantee religious assistance in clinics and hospitals. They are “reserves of love”, who bring serenity and hope to the suffering.
In the Encyclical Deus Caritas Est I remarked: in this invaluable service professional competence is essential… training is a primary, fundamental requirement, but it is not sufficient on its own. We are dealing with human beings… who need humanity. They need heartfelt concern. “Consequently, in addition to their necessary professional training, these charity workers need a ‘formation of the heart’: they need to be led to that encounter with God in Christ which awakens their love and opens their spirits to others” (n. 31).
Let us ask the Virgin Mary to accompany our journey of faith and our commitment of real love, especially for the needy, as we invoke her motherly intercession for our brothers and sisters experiencing suffering in body or in spirit.
Catholicism Pure & Simple 
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