Gospel (Lk 7:11-17)

Soon afterward Jesus went to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a large crowd from the city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

And he came and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And the dead man sat up, and began to speak. And he gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all; and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”

And this report concerning him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

Commentary

Today's Gospel takes us to Nain. When Jesus draws hear He meets a funeral procession. In a small town like Nain the cemetery would have would have been on the outskirts, and probably almost the entire population would have attended the funeral.

Jesus asks who is being buried. A widow is burying her only son. Perhaps she has recently buried her husband and now she has to bury her son as well. How great would have been her grief and loneliness!

Jesus’ heart is moved with compassion and He tells her: “Do not weep.” The woman may have been surprised by these words and asked Jesus: how can I not cry faced with such great sorrow?

Jesus is never indifferent to our suffering. He is always moved and seeks to comfort us. Faced with the mystery of suffering, we have to go to our Lord to share it with Him and let Him comfort us.

And when we do so Jesus tells us, as He did the son of the widow at Nain: “I say to you, arise.” He tells us that the suffering we are undergoing has a reason, and is meant to lead to our growing in love for God and those around us. I am aware of your suffering and will assist you. Get up and continue growing in love. May our suffering not lead to death but to life, even when we often have to cry. For it will be our Lord himself who dries our tears.