Desperation [Proper 8B - Mark 5:21-43]
The Rev. Jeremiah Williamson Mark 5:21-43 Desperation The late, great Henri Nouwen once wrote, “While visiting the University of Notre Dame, where I had been a teacher for a few years, I met an older experienced professor who had spent most of his life there. And while we strolled over the beautiful campus, he said with a certain melancholy in his voice, “You know, my whole life I have been complaining that my work was constantly interrupted, until I discovered that my interruptions were my work.” [1] I suspect, perhaps, Jesus agreed more whole-heartedly with this sentiment than did Jairus. Because when Jesus stopped, then so did the little girl’s heart. It is true that Jairus witnessed a beautiful miracle in that moment of interruption. But also that same interruption cost him the miracle for which he so desperately longed. And therein lies the tension: the interruptions are the work, but so too is the task list. ...