The Gospel reading from Mark 5:21-43 is a pair of stories about faith and Jesus’ power over life and death. The woman with the hemorrhage showed great faith in spite of obstacles. The story of Jairus and his daughter demonstrated great faith on the part of a religious leader. Both came from different social classes. Jairus was a well-to-do member of the religious establishment-a group that often opposed Jesus. The woman with the hemorrhage was poor and a social outcast. The difference in social classes did not matter to Jesus. He treated both of them equally.

In each case, the “establishment” could not offer a solution to the problem, but Jesus could, in spite of opposition and laughter. Jairus was desperate because his child was dying, and as those of you who are parents know all too well, a parent of a sick or dying child will do almost anything to save the child. Jairus was so desperate he knelt at the feet of the one person who could help him-Jesus.