“When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said, ‘Do not weep.’ … He stepped forward, touched the coffin, and said, ‘Young man, I tell you, arise!” (Luke 7:11-13).
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Perhaps the most wrenching experience in life is the loss of a child.
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Such is the case of the widow in today’s Gospel. She has not only lost her husband; she’s also lost her son.
Witnessing her loss firsthand brings Jesus to tears – to the point that he raises this young man from the dead.
Clearly, this mother’s tears made a difference.
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Like this widow, Saint Monica – whose feast day we celebrate today – mourned the spiritual death of her son, Augustine.
For 17 years, she watched him drift further and further from the Lord until he was lost. But Monica never gave up on him.
Mothers never do.
She prayed for her son daily until he came home.
As Providence would have it, Augustine not only became a believer; he also became one of the most persuasive writers in the history of Christianity.
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Like Saint Monica, many of us love someone who’s drifted from the Lord – maybe even one of our children.
But our stories are not over just yet; Monica reminds of that. We must keep on praying.
It may take time – even 17 years before our loved one returns – but the same Jesus who raised this widow’s son from the dead can bring our loved ones back to life.
Who is that one person whom we can pray for today?