We have two resurrection accounts happening in our set of
readings for today. Elijah raises up the son of a widow in Zarephath and Jesus raises up the son of a widow in Nain. We’re not given the name of either of the widows. We only know that these sons seem to be the last living male relatives
that they have. Culturally, Jewish women at this time needed to have a male
to accompany them through town – the males were also the owners of property. So life was very difficult for women, especially for widows. And these two widows were not only sadden by the loss of
their sons, but also by the fact that they’ll soon be cast aside by
society. But God does not let that happen, does He? Elijah’s prayer is answered as God raises up one son. Jesus, who is God incarnate, has pity on the widow in Nain
and raises up her son. In both cases God brought joy for what he did in the life of
His people. But what’s the bigger miracle here? We often fixate on the resurrections, which are truly great miracles. But we know from the history of Jesus, that He yearns for
the faith of His people. He longs for a relationship with His people.
10th Sunday of Ordinary Time (C)
READINGS FOR 10th SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME (C)
