Let’s listen to the Gospel:
“At that time, when Jesus had once again crossed by boat to the other shore, a large crowd gathered around him and he was standing along the sea. And one of the leaders of the synagogue came, named Jairus, who, when he saw him, fell at his feet and begged him insistently: “My little daughter is dying: come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be saved and alive.” She went with him. A large crowd followed him and gathered around him. Now a woman, who had been bleeding for twelve years and had suffered much at the hands of many doctors, spending all her possessions without any advantage, but rather getting worse, having heard about Jesus, came among the crowd and from behind touched his coat. In fact, she said: “If I can even just touch her clothes, I will be saved.” And immediately her blood flow stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of the disease. And immediately Jesus, having realized the strength that had come out of him, turned to the crowd saying: “Who touched my clothes?”. His disciples said to him: «You see the crowd gathering around you and you say: “Who touched me”».
He looked around to see the one who had done this. And the woman, afraid and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, she came and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her: «Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be healed of your illness.” She was still speaking when they came from the house of the leader of the synagogue to say: «Your daughter is dead. Why are you still bothering the Master?». But Jesus, having heard what they said, said to the ruler of the synagogue: “Do not be afraid, only have faith!”. And he suffered no man to follow him, except Peter, and James, and John, the brother of James. They arrived at the house of the leader of the synagogue and he saw a commotion and people crying and screaming loudly. When he entered, he said to them: «Why are you upset and crying? The little girl is not dead, but she is sleeping.” And they laughed at him. But he, having thrown them all out, took with him the father and mother of the child and those who were with him and entered where the child was. He took the little girl’s hand and said to her: “Talità kum”, which means: “Girl, I say to you: get up!”. And immediately the girl arose and walked; she was in fact twelve years old. They were struck by great amazement. And she urged them insistently that no one should know about it and told them to feed her.”
One of the characteristics that distinguish man from the rest is that he was created to have an upright and balanced position. Only when he is injured, tired, sick or, worse, dead, does the man assume another position, the supine one! This is what happened to the hemorrhaging woman who, destined to live on the side of the road, as she was considered unclean and excluded from social life, was placed on the ground, ignored. But, after her courage: “If I can even touch his clothes, I will be saved”, she finds life, salvation, relationships and healing. He gets back on his feet, with dignity, resumes his life because he has touched Jesus.
Similarly to Jairus’ daughter. One of the leaders of the synagogue, whose daughter had died, Jesus, entering the house, says: “The child is not dead, but sleeping …” and, taking her by the hand, he raises her up. The hand of Jesus once again lifts, frees, heals, restores life. “Talitha Kum – arise” Jesus continues to repeat to all those who collapse under the weight of sins, to those who, defeated, feel excluded, to those who, discouraged, give in to despair, to those who, disappointed, remain alone and abandoned by all, to those who feel the weight of existence to the point of being paralyzed by weakness. Arise! How comforting it is to feel called by God and invited to resume the posture that he has designed for every man and woman. Talitha Kum, standing, taken by the hand by God, to be the people of the resurrected, of the reborn. He, the source of life, he who, of the tomb has made a cradle, continually resurrects us from all the deaths we fall into. Standing up to look each other in the eye.
