Reverend Larry Silva, Bishop | Diocese of Honolulu

Life can be very hard sometimes. It certainly was for the woman mentioned in the Gospel. She had been bleeding for twelve years, which not only made her very weak but also kept her from attending the synagogue, as anyone bleeding was considered “unclean.” She was not only sick but isolated. She sought relief through many doctors. In the end, it was not medicine but faith that saved her because she had so much faith in Jesus. Just touching his cloak, without even bothering him to pay attention to her, would be enough to heal her. It was this faith that Jesus commended, and she was healed from then on.

Life became difficult for the synagogue official and his family when their twelve-year-old daughter became so sick that she was at the point of death. He did not go to medical doctors but to Jesus, the great healer. Even when he received news that his daughter had died, he still put his faith in Jesus, and Jesus raised the girl from the dead.

"But that was a very long time ago," said Bishop John Doe during his homily for the Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time on June 30th, 2024. "Things like this do not happen now, right? Oh yes, indeed they do! You may not have the same troubles, but we all have some."

Bishop Doe addressed contemporary issues such as bullying, anxiety about tests or sports selections, family illness causing worry, and familial discord. "These and many other things like them can drain the life out of you," he noted.

He emphasized that people today can turn to Jesus for healing just as they did in Gospel times. "They also go to the same Jesus who is with us in a very special way in the sacraments!" Bishop Doe explained.

Although people can no longer touch Jesus' cloak for healing today, Bishop Doe stressed that there is something even better: "Jesus gives us the gift of the Holy Spirit so that we may have wisdom and understanding to know he is still with us; and courage to approach him in all our joys and sorrows."

He assured those being confirmed: "When you are confirmed today, it will be Jesus himself who will mark you with the Oil of Gladness and breathe his Holy Spirit into you forever."

Bishop Doe highlighted how receiving Holy Communion allows individuals to bring Christ into their daily lives: "Jesus can live in your house because he will live there in you... He gives himself to you physically so that you can give him to others and be their source of healing and life."

While acknowledging that suffering remains part of life, Bishop Doe concluded by encouraging believers: "Jesus came to overcome death and destruction... through us who become members of his Body when we are immersed in God’s love in Baptism."