What Comes After Fear

First Reading: First Kings 17:17-24

Sometime later 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?" " Give me your son," Elijah said to her. Taking him from her lap, he carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed. He 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 returned 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. "See!" Elijah said to her, "your son is alive."

"Now indeed I know that you are a man of God," the woman replied to Elijah. "The word of the LORD comes truly from your mouth."

Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13

Second Reading: Galatians 1:11-19

Now I want you to know, brothers, 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

But when (God), who from my mother's womb had set me apart and called me through his grace, was pleasedto 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 5 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.

Gospel: Luke 7:11-17

Soon afterward he 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 bearers 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." This report about him spread through the whole of Judea and in all the surrounding region.

Reflection
By Fidji Rivera-Sarmiento

In Psychology, fear is a vital human response to physical and emotional danger. Without fear, we cannot have the instinct to protect ourselves from true, legitimate threats. But some days, we fear irrationally, and when we do not understand some facets, we become fearful. That was how the people reacted when a dead man got up upon Jesus’ command. “Fear seized them all.” And who would not be afraid? I imagine it happening today, and I am sure that it would be something pulled out from a Walking Dead series. But what is beautiful in this text is what comes after fear. They all glorified God!


Is it possible that we praise God while we feel fear? Certainly. But is it easy? Of course not. When illness strikes a family member, can we effortlessly exclaim, ‘Praise God for this cancer’? When after all your sacrifices, your efforts went nowhere and you failed, can we go around and spread the goodness of the Lord? Definitely not. When we lose from the recent election after all the physical, emotional, and monetary resources that we gave out, and still the people did not see the sincerity of your heart to serve, do we say ‘Thank you Lord for this loss’? Obviously not. Because we fear when we do not understand. But in our heart of hearts, when acceptance has finally enveloped us, we will realize that God’s hand is evident in every single happenstance. He HAS a reason and a purpose for everything. If and only if we understand God’s purpose can fear be extinguished.

Prayer

Dear Holy Spirit,

Fear has consumed me and I am getting weary living under anxiety. I hate being a worry-wart; it takes me nowhere. I don’t like being afraid, but I can’t seem to be brave enough to let go. I fear rejection, failure, and so I build walls around me instead of living the life you have prepared for me. Fear is the cancer that eats up my spirit, but I offer it all to You. Fill me, Holy Spirit. Search my heart and replace fear with trust, with love, with hope, and with an understanding that You are the director of my life and that my life script has already been written down on the palm of Your Hands. Inundate me with Your holy peace that surpasses all understanding. Calm my troubled heart. And I raise my hands in surrender to Your Will. Amen.