Heroes

June 26, 1994

Proper 8 – Year B

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

Smithfield, NC

Lessons:  Deut. 15:7-11

Psalm 112

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Mark 5:22-43

Come Holy Spirit, touch our eyes, open them for us to see, touch our ears, open them for us to hear, touch our lips, help us to speak the truth, touch our hearts, and set them on fire; in the name of Jesus we pray.  Amen.

Recently, in our lifetime it seems, our heroes have vanished.  We, the people of the last half of the 20th century are a people for the first time in human history without heroes.  I frequently ask young people in our schools or residents at Day By Day or acquaintances in the community, “Who are your heroes?”  More and more often, I get a complete blank stare rather than a verbal answer.  When an answer comes it sounds like this, “Michael Jordan…Modonna…O.J. Simpson.”

But there is hope.  A couple of days ago while riding to Salisbury to attend the ordination of a friend, I heard a radio interview on UNC Public Radio of a 14 year old girl who was asked the question, “Who is your hero?”  There was a slight pause and then she said, “Well my hero used to be Michael Jackson, but now my hero is my grandmother.”  The interviewer expressed some surprise and then asked, “Why is your grandmother your hero?”  The young girl didn’t hesitate this time but immediately said, “Oh, she always listens to me, she never judges me, she always just loves me and tells me stories about life.”  Yes, there is hope.  Even in a world of no heroes and fallen, broken heroes, there is hope, there is at least one grandmother talking to one granddaughter telling her stories about life, listening not judging, and just plain loving her.

The story we heard from Mark this morning can help us understand better what a real hero is like.  Jairus, the president of the synagogue comes away from his home where his daughter, is ill and dying to seek the help of Jesus.  Nothing particularly heroic there you say, perhaps, perhaps not.  Jairus was an important man, a leader, and a religious leader, possibly elected to his position and with a following of his own.  He lived in a society and time, not unlike our own, where position and status were important, very important.

But there is this Jesus out and about in the countryside who heals on the Sabbath in defiance of the law and the religious authorities; Jesus, who casts out demons and associates with the socially and morally lowest strata of his society; Jesus, who has been thought mad by his own family; Jesus, who had touched lepers and unclean women. This same Jesus is the one to whom Jairus, the important socially, politically and religiously correct president of the synagogue, must go if his daughter is to be raised.

It must have been hard for Jairus.  He was risking a lot; reputation, status, perhaps his position as president of the synagogue.  It must have seemed to Jairus that God had placed him in a terrible dilemma.  Jairus, however does the heroic thing, he values not his status, his reputation, his position, his fine office of president of the synagogue.  Yes, Jairus chooses to fall at the feet of Jesus, at the feet of an itinerant preacher, at the feet of one who values not status, position or office, but one who values who we really are, one who values faith, and one who responds to our deepest, darkest fears and needs.  And so they go back to Jairus’ house. 

On the way, people arrive from the house and tell Jairus, “Don’t bother the teacher any longer, you daughter is dead.”  In other words, save your reputation while you can Jairus, all is lost, perhaps if you leave this Jesus now with some luck and a good PR man we can keep you on as president of the synagogue.  Jesus helps at this low point for Jairus.  Jesus says to Jairus, “Do not be afraid, only have faith.”  And he does, he continues with Jesus to the house.  When they arrive at Jairus’ home, the place is in an uproar, people are crying and wailing. Jesus, when he sees the girl, tells the mourners that she is not dead but only asleep.  They ridicule Jesus and Jesus asks all to leave except Jairus and the mother of the girl.  He calls to her, “Taliha Kum!” “Little girl, get up.”  Meet your hero Jairus, your father who risked everything to come to me and ask for my help.  No, Mark doesn’t report that last line, it’s only in my imagination.

As the young girl got up and walked about as Mark reports and after Jesus told the parents to get her something to eat, I see a father, Jairus, with tears of joy soaking the bread he is giving his daughter, understanding the God of Israel and the faith of Abraham in a new way.  I see a daughter who has a new hero, Jairus, her father who risked status, reputation and position for her.  I see Jesus who had given them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, going on His way to Nazareth where He would again confront the authorities.  Jesus understood that they should be quiet about what had happened so that they might come to understand that Jairus had been raised as well as his daughter.  Jairus had been asleep and near death, too.  Jesus calls to us, each of us.  Little girl, little boy, old man, sorrowful woman, get up.  We are not dead, only asleep.  Can you hear Him calling; Phil get up, Mike get up Penny get up; there is work to do in Nazareth and beyond. Taliha Kum!

Amen.