REFLECTIONS TODAY The story, unique to Luke, complements the preceding miracle. After healing the slave of the pagan centurion, Jesus brings back to life the only son of a Jewish widow. Jesus is the Savior of all. No one is excluded from the salvation he offers — neither sinners considered as lost nor widows and orphans considered helpless and defenseless. Jesus is sensitive to the needs of people. While he looks for faith, it is the widow’s helplessness that draws his gracious compassion. No one has to ask him; he intervenes to give the young man back to his mother. Speaking of mercy, Pope Francis draws this challenge: “It is absolutely essential for the Church and for the credibility of her message that she herself live and testify to mercy. Her language and her gestures must transmit mercy, so as to touch the hearts of all people and inspire them once more to find the road that leads to the Father” (Misericordiae Vultus, 12). Gospel • Luke 7:11-17 Jesus 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. Source: “365 Days with the Lord 2022,” St. Pauls, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 632-895-9701; Fax 632-895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.