First Reading

A reading from the First Book of Kings (17:17-24)

Elijah went to Zarephath of Sidon to the house of a widow. The son of the mistress of the house fell sick, and his sickness grew more severe until he stopped breathing. So she said to Elijah, "Why have you done this to me, O man of God? Have you come to me to call attention to my guilt and to kill my son?" Elijah said to her, "Give me your son." Taking him from her lap, he carried the son to the upper room where he was staying, and put him on his bed. Elijah called out to the Lord: "O Lord, my God, will you afflict even the widow with whom I am staying by killing her son?" Then he stretched himself out upon the child three times and called out to the Lord: "O Lord, my God, let the life breath return to the body of this child." The Lord heard the prayer of Elijah; the life breath return to the child's body and he revived. Taking the child, Elijah brought him down into the house from the upper room and gave him to his mother. Elijah said to her, "See! Your son is alive." The woman replied to Elijah, "Now indeed I know that you are a man of God. The word of the Lord comes truly from your mouth."

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (30:2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13)

(R) I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.

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. (R)

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 goodwill. At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing. (R)

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. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Galatians (1:11-19)

I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel preached by me is not of human origin. For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

For you heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it, and progressed in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my race, since I was even more a zealot for my ancestral traditions. But when God, who from my mother's womb had set me apart and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him to the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; rather, I went into Arabia and then returned to Damascus.

Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to confer with Cephas and remained with him for fifteen days. But I did not see any other of the apostles, only James the brother of the Lord.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (7:11-17)

Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, "Do not weep." He stepped forward and touched the coffin; at this the bearer halted, and he said, "Young man, I tell you, arise!" The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Fear seized them all, and they glorified God exclaiming, "A great prophet has arisen in our midst," and "God has visited his people." The report about him spread through the whole of Judea and in all the surrounding region.

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

There was a man named Charlie. One night Charlie heard a knock at his door. He opened the door, and the man standing there said, "Please can you help provide me with some shelter for the night? Charlie asked him, "Who are you?" The man said, "I am God's nephew." "Oh", said Charlie, "I have heard of God's son, God's daughter, God's friend but never of God's nephew. Are you really a nephew of God? asked Charlie. "Yes, I am," the man replied. "Well then," said Charlie, "for an exalted and special guest such as yourself, I must offer only the most exalted and special place for you to spend the night." Charlie stepped outside and closed his door, and then turned to the man and said, "Follow me. The man curiously followed Charlie. Ten minutes later, they reached the local church. Charlie turned to the man and said, "You said you are God's nephew so what better place could I offer you to stay the night than here at your own uncle's house.""

In today's first reading from the Book of Kings, we read the story of one of God's servants, the prophet Elijah finding shelter in the house of a poor widow and all the events occurred during his sojourn. Let us look at the circumstances surrounding the story to better understand the text. A prophet is a chosen servant of God whose role is to remind kings and people of God's expectations, God's law or scriptures. Elijah, therefore, is chosen by God to confront Ahab, the king of Israel and his wicked wife, the queen Jezebel. He is sent to warn them of the impending draught and famine for they have killed many prophets and forbidden the worship of Yahweh, the true God of Israel, and replaced it with the worship of other gods. After delivering his message to Ahab, Elijah led by God hides himself by a stream where he gets water and food. After a time, he is led to a house of a widow who could provide him with lodging but no food. Elijah blesses her and her son with a miraculous supply of food to last the time of drought.

But quite unexpectedly, in the midst of a period of God's grace and blessing a disaster strikes. The widow's only son falls sick and dies. The mother, of course like any other mother is devastated. She blames Elijah for the death of her only son. She thinks that the prophet's presence has attracted God's attention to her own sins and that he is punishing her with this grief. She asks Elijah, "Have you come to me to call attention to my guilt and to kill my son?" The prophet perhaps feels hurt and humiliated. Yet he is calm and quiet. He is compassionate and kind to the mother. He understands her loss and sorrow. He doesn't get upset with her. He doesn't even protest his innocence. He merely asks the mother to give her son to him. Then he takes the boy to his room and places him on his bed and asks God for something which has never happened before. He asks God to restore life in the boy. God revives the boy and the prophet hands the boy to the mother alive and well. The story ends with the woman recognizing the power of God through the prophet and believing in the word of the Lord. Obviously the miracle has brought her to faith in God. However, the event is seen as the test of Elijah's own faith. He realizes that God is only trying to test his faith and perfect him through trial and difficulty, test and temptation.

What are we to learn from this story? We see a great contradiction between the widow and the prophet. Some of us, like the woman, perhaps often react to the hardships very badly. We focus too much on the hurt, pain and suffering. We worry. We get upset. We vent our anger. We fall apart. We curse ourselves. We blame it on others. We begin to question God. We distrust others. We begin to lose confidence in ourselves, lose faith and hope in God and we become discouraged. Because of which we miss the help and grace God is trying to give us.

Two days ago I had to remind my parents and others in my family of the same circumstances. My youngest brother who has been suffering from nervous disorder or epilepsy and taking medication for 20 years, fainted and fell his face down on the road about 30 kilometers away from my home. He had a very bad seizure. He was rescued, treated for his injuries and brought home by the strangers. While he is lying on his bed with bruises and cuts on his face, several stiches, bleeding on his jaw and chin and broken teeth my parents are questioning God. Why does God allow such things to happen to devout and faithful believers? What sins have we committed against God? I had to remind my parents that because of our focus on physical pain and suffering we fail to see the grace of God through the strangers rescuing and bringing our son and brother home alive. Friends, let us remember, when we suffer, God wants us to cast aside our doubts and cling to His Word, and to be ever ready to welcome the new grace.

And just like in the life of Elijah there are times the Lord allows us to go through all kinds of trials and hardships. He does it so that we might learn to trust Him and that we might learn to rely on Him more fully and perfectly. He does it so that we might experience His grace in new ways and that we might be brought to a place of utter dependence. As God honored the faith of the prophet and raised the child to life so also God honors our faith. Let us remember the great and precious promise of our Lord Jesus, Matthew (21:22), "If you have faith, everything you ask for in prayer, you will receive." When we trust God completely, He will see us through our trials.

Let us bring to the Lord whatever we are facing today - hardship of any sort or diseases or illnesses or disappointments. Let us, like the mother who put her dead son into the arms of Elijah, confidently place all our suffering in the hands of Jesus for healing and peace. Let us show care and compassion towards those who suffer from neurological disorders, chronic illnesses and disabilities. Let us always pray for God's comfort and peace for all the suffering.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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