hands on her, and she will live.” Jesus stood up and followed him with his disciples. Then a
woman who had suffered from a severe bleeding for twelve years came up from behind
and touched the edge of his cloak. For she thought, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”
Jesus turned, saw her and said, “Courage, my daughter, your faith has saved you.” And from
that moment the woman was cured. When Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the
flute players and the excited crowd, he said, “Get out of here! The girl is not dead. She is
only sleeping!” And they laughed at him. But once the crowd had been turned out, Jesus
went in and took the girl by the hand, and she stood up. The news of this spread through
the whole area.
Reflect
In a dream, Jacob saw the Lord in heaven who affirmed his covenant with Jacob and his
descendants, promising to make them a great nation and give them a land of their own.
To remember that encounter, Jacob used a stone to mark the holy place.
We too have holy places, places where we encounter the living God. First are our churches,
places where we gather to celebrate the Eucharist with our parish family, to ask God’s blessing
for important times in our lives, or simply to pray in silence. We also have other holy places.
Since the early centuries of the Church, people have gone on pilgrimage, traveling to visit
places where Jesus walked and where saints gave witness to him.
These pilgrimages are a model for Christian life, which is a search for holiness. God is the
source of all holiness. We find him in our holy places, in the sacraments we celebrate
there, and in the people we meet on the journey. If we stay attentive, God will reveal his
presence and draw us closer to his heart.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2023