Oh how the crowds followed Our dear Lord Jesus as he went from one place to another! They all wanted to touch him or at least the fringe of his cloak. Our Lord did not stop them. He wanted it so as to communicate with them and transmit to them his saving power. At a deeper level he was establishing the grounds for setting up the economy of the sacraments. For especially the people that will come afterwards till the end of time

they can establish contact with Christ through the sensible and efficacious signs that are the sacraments that communicate to us his saving grace. These sacraments are accessible via the external senses. That is how much and deep God understands our need to touch him.

The Gospel today narrates for us the miraculous catch of fish where we find Jesus boarding the boat of Simon. We should read that as an image of Our Lord boarding our lives. Shall we be as docile as St. Peter in going to the deep waters and in throwing the nets for a catch when it was not the time to fish? With the miraculous catch Simon was moved to ask our Lord to depart from him because he was a sinful man. We also find ourselves incredulous at how God comes close to us, gives us good things, and even asks us to follow him. Listen to Our blessed Lord assure him. “Do not be afraid. From now on you shall catch men.” We shouldn’t be afraid to dare to follow our Lord and doubt or second guess ourselves.

Our Lord today in the Gospel spends bonding time with his apostles. They have been working hard, so hard that they did not even have the time to eat. In any case, he brings them to another part to be by themselves. However, the crowds were there already waiting for him. What is striking is that they according to the good Lord were like sheep without a shepherd. Hence, he renewed his teaching activity prodding the apostles to do the same. They were supposed to rest but the urgency of taking care of the souls of those crowds had a greater pull. Especially parents with their children, we all bear some responsibility in explaining the faith to the others.

King Herod shows us the dangerous situation we put ourselves in when we think and act in an intoxicated way. During his birthday he and his guests were pleased by the sensual dance of Salome, daughter of Herodias, who was recently stolen by Herod to be his consort from being Philip’s wife.  Herod asks Salome what she would want him to give her for the entertainment. Upon the advice of her mom, she asks for the head of John the Baptist who was in prison but kept alive by Herod’s fascination at listening to him speak. Herodias was so bothered by John’s repeated judgements about the anomaly of her and Herod’s situation together. She wanted to kill him but couldn’t because of Herod. So now an opportunity presented itself. Herod caved to the request and ordered the execution of the holy man for his head to be served on a platter for Salome, who brought it to her mother Herodias. We should be careful in making decisions of great import when we are under the influence of alcohol.

Wordliness teaches us to trust in the world. Trust in God is moved to the margins. Hence, our blessed Lord forbids his apostles from bringing certain necessities when they went out commissioned by Jesus to help him evangelize by curing the sick and expelling devils. Thus, God also deprives us of certain things in life to help us exercise this trust.

Today we celebrate the feast of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple. Mary and Joseph were very law abiding Jews and they fulfilled the obligation to present to the Lord their first born son. This is a practice we need to adopt or to continue with great love and devotion. The best for the Lord! Then, we need to trust God in venturing forward in life although we are sure that there will be difficulties and sufferings and pain.

We are sent by the Church to this Gospel scene with Jesus who meets Jairus begging him to come to visit his daughter who was dying and in the trip over there his encounter with the woman who had been suffering from a haemorrhage for twelve years. Both stories and miracle enlightens us about the faith Jesus taught us about. We only need to trust in the Lord!

Our Lord shows his command over the wind and the sea in this episode of the Gospel. He had been sleeping at the stern of the boat when a sudden gale tossed their boat like it were a toy. The disciples were frightened so much and the they ran and woke Him up. They asked him whether he cared for them. Of course, he does care for them. He got up and quieted the waves and the wind. We should not doubt our Lord. He always cares for us even on those times He seem not to. That simply means he is caring for us in a different way.

As usual Our dear Lord uses parables to explain the deepest mysteries. One of these primary mysteries is that about the Kingdom of God that he has been inviting everyone to join. From the very beginning of his public ministry he vectors everyone there by repenting. He compares this Kingdom to a mustard see that mysteriously is able to sprout and grow from being a tiny seed to a big tree with branches that provide shade and security. We may not understand why the Church legislates this or that, or we may find such rulings as exaggerated and fanatical and so forth but as it is the Kingdom of God is a place where you can be secure from the dangers outside her fold. These rules are simply like what our parents used to give us to keep us safe at home.

Today’s Gospel enlightens us regarding the nature of Christ. He is light for us. Since he is the Truth he sheds light on our knowing faculties so we may see and understand better reality. Without light it is difficult for us to see our way, to find objects we are looking for and impossible for us to see the direction and goals we are trying to achieve. We cannot keep our Lord away from us. Otherwise we make our journey here on earth more difficult if not impossible. We may find other lights that would just send us on a tailspin.