Martha Reyes: "Without faith, psychology is paralyzed".Veronica SevillaWomen are a factor of change in the Church".Let us visit with Jesus the village of Nain, the "amphitheater" where one of the most chilling dramas of the Gospels will be played out. Its gate was a narrow arch of simple architecture which mysteriously became a very important crossroads; the face to face meeting of two caravans with such different agendas and directions: the procession of death and the procession of life.
Jesus that day was accompanied by a large festive crowd following the succulent itinerary of wonders and miracles, novel teachings and imaginative parables of the unpredictable master of Galilee. These had already tasted flashes of blessings, witnessed miracles of healings in previous towns and villages, and as in a symphonic crescendo anticipated from a good conductor, they expected more depth and intensity as the day progressed until they were brought to a standing ovation of enthusiasm. And they were not disappointed.
Processions of the heart
The contrast could not have been more marked. In the town of Naim, another crowd was already gathered in the style of the funeral processions of all times and cultures. They were bringing to bury a young man, the only son of a widow who had been mercilessly struck by life with two consecutive and irreparable losses. We can imagine people with darkened faces wrapped in a contagious collective sadness, questioning the meaninglessness of a brief existence. Dressed in mourning, they walked with slow steps like Hebrews lost in the desert or like soldiers who lost a war. When reality is not accepted, some argue, others rebel, a few resign themselves, but many submerge in their silences and drown in their tears. The amalgam of human reactions to tragedy is very diverse.
Both processions confronted each other under the shadow of the small arch at the entrance to Nain, but which one enters? which one leaves? As when at the gates of the human heart the entrance or exit of sadness or joy, of hope or despair is disputed. Which of these feelings ends up ruling our heart? Which of the two crowds will star in the event? In which of these two processions do you and I walk?
The members of the Nain funeral procession did not have to make the decision whether to stop the procession or to proceed: Jesus made the decision for them. The Master's feet crossed the threshold of Nain's gate before the fallen ones left "Nain" carrying the shadows of their lost and departed children. Only Jesus has traversed the impenetrable frontier of the afterlife, and in this gospel he gives us a foretaste.
Woman, do not cry
In reality, there are many women, like Naim's widow, who live motherhoods full of pain because they stopped smiling when they lost their children to vices, mental problems, destructive lifestyles, or because their children simply abandoned the faith of their parents. All of these are also experiences of death and grief.
Suddenly Jesus pronounced the words that have become commands to the heart, which he continues to utter before the hearts of all mothers who groan and implore for their lost children: "Woman, weep no more". For the miracle in Nain was also for the mother as it will be for all mothers who can no longer bear the grief of carrying dying children through the darkened alleys of their stories. I will transform your mourning into a joyful dance.
The Gospel says that Jesus had compassion on the mother. With mothers becoming intercessors for their children, turning their sleeplessness and sacrifices into reverent and untiring prayers, Jesus spares no mercy in moving his children from paths of death to paths of life. These are miracles we see daily in the conversion and healing retreats where dying young people come to participate and return to life and know new joys.
Therefore, woman and mother, when you pray for your children, remember verse 15 of this beautiful Gospel: the young man who was dead arose, began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. The joy of this woman was not scheduled in human calendars! Just as the father of the prodigal son burst with joy at the return of a son whom he had thought was lost forever! No wonder there is a feast in heaven enlivened by heavenly choirs every time a child of God returns to the Father's house!
And with the authority that stopped the storm on the Sea of Galilee, commanded the passage of death to be stopped, intercepted the violence of grief, touched the dead young man and said to him, "Young man arise."
Young man stand up
No wonder someone said and we all repeat, "just one word from you would be enough to heal me". Which of these words do we need: be done, stop, follow me, look, walk, cleanse yourself, believe, arise?
Naim's miracle is for young people who lost their innocence, their freedom, their illusions, because they ended up tied to harmful ideologies and behaviors or seduced by the lie of sin. They must remember that life is that borrowed time, a contract with strict conditions, sometimes it passes slowly and other times it passes very fast and without realizing it. In the same way they must remember that death is that enigma, mystery, punishment or reward, book that closes or eternity that begins. But more than anything else, listening to the voice of God is the moment to offer the flesh and its passions as a seed that falls to the ground, to free the spirit to its true destiny, to stop chasing after ephemeral dreams and to go in search of supernatural purposes. That revelation and awareness also raised the prodigal son from his error (Luke 15:11-32) and returned him, not to a new life, but to the life of before that he had temporarily lost in the deceitfulness of sin.
The miracle is for everyone
The inhabitants of Nain did not have to continue in the funeral procession. They were invited to join the procession of life. They took off their mourning clothes and armed themselves with new illusions and strength by choosing to continue believing and trusting in life even when the present reality was disconcerting. There is hope if we believe in a God who can do everything, for whom nothing is impossible! The sobbing of those who wept was transformed into well-tuned notes, into the song of those reanimated by the prophetic hopes that would characterize the visit of the Messiah on earth:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me and sent me with good news to the humble. To heal wounded hearts, To announce to the banished and the imprisoned His return to the light. To publish a Happy Year full of Yahweh's favors. To comfort those who mourn, And give to Zion's afflicted. A wreath instead of ashes, The oil of joyful days instead of mourning clothes. Songs of happiness instead of sorrow."
Isaiah 61:1-3
Naim's miracle is for those who need the God of the impossible to strike fear into the unbelievers, flood the impoverished with love, lift up the discouraged with power, and resurrect all that was thought to be needlessly deceased.
The author of life visited the threshold of death. Of Jesus' many miracles of healing the sick and freeing captives, there are three events that present a God personally engaged in the restorative action of human beings at three stages of life: when he brings back to life the daughter of Jairus (Matthew 5:21-43), the young son of the widow of Naim (Luke 7:11-17), and Lazarus of Bethany (John 11). In bringing a girl, a young man and a grown man back to life, God's healing power is offered in the totality of human life.
God is always on time
In these three gospels of "resurrections" we see that a fallen humanity, dismantled from its original dignity as children of God, will need more than healing gestures; it will need a violent intervention of its Creator to wrench it from the clutches of death and from the silence of the suffocating tombs where sin often encloses it and wants to destroy it.
God is sometimes late, but he always arrives on time. If Jesus had arrived in Nain hours earlier, perhaps the miracle would have been to heal a sick person. If Jesus had arrived at Nain hours later, the miracle would have been to bring comfort to the mother and the people. The same Jesus who chose to arrive at that precise moment to Nain also knows the urgencies and the urgencies of your life to rescue you in time from the despair and affliction that the various experiences of death force you to suffer.
Therefore, woman and mother, weep no more for God promises you that your children will arise. Therefore, children, leave the paths of death and join the procession of life.
