Who wouldn’t feel compassion for the two widows in today’s Scriptures? While Elijah is a guest at the home of the widow of Zarephath her child dies. Jesus, his disciples and a large crowd are traveling to Nain. On the way they meet a funeral procession for the son of another widow.
In their societies women had to depend on the male members of their families for support and protection. For widows that task would have fallen to their sons. So, besides losing their sons, the two widows are also made vulnerable. The Zarephath widow’s son is still young, but she would one day need him. Without the care of their sons the widows would have had to return to their families, or in-laws to survive. In a poor society this might not be possible and so they would become destitute. Luke emphasizes the widow of Nain’s fragile condition when he tells us that the dead man was, “the only son of his mother and she was a widow.”
Elijah and Jesus weren’t merely wonder workers who could, through their own powers, raise the dead. Their miracles are attributed to God’s intervention. After her son is given back to her the widow exclaims, “The word of the Lord comes truly from your mouth.” When Jesus raises the young man from the dead the crowd glorifies God saying, “A great prophet has risen in our midst,” and “God has visited his people.”
In neither account do the widows ask the prophets for help. Elijah and Jesus take it upon themselves to come to their aid. Those who experienced the miracles attribute them to God. It is best summed up by the people’s acclamation in the gospel, “Fear seized them all, and they glorified God….” It is the kind of fear humans have before the awesome power of God. Who else but God can raise the dead? The widow of Zarephath comes to a similar conclusion when she says to Elijah, “Now indeed I know that you are a man of God.”
Note the difference between how Elijah and Jesus accomplished their miracles. Elijah performs a ritual act by lying on top of the boy several times. Jesus, on the other hand, does not even touch the young man. He simply commands him, “Young man, I tell you arise.” Jesus shows his authority: he speaks and the good work is accomplished. It is another example of the power of the Word of God — the same Word we hear proclaimed to us at each liturgical celebration. It is a Word that can revive our drooping spirits and put new life into our prayer. The Word can restore hope that has died and love that has grown cold.
“Widow” doesn’t just apply to women who have lost their husbands. It can be a term to describe women in situations similar to the widows in today’s readings. I recently preached at a parish near San Francisco. It is a great city with ocean and bay views on three sides. Like older cities it has diverse neighborhoods. What is happening in San Francisco is also happening in other American cities. The poor are being pushed out by gentrification and the resulting higher rents.
I heard of a single mother with two children who had a low wage job. Her husband deserted her and their children. She is a “widow” now, comparable to our biblical women. She couldn’t afford it when her landlord doubled her rent and now she and her children are homeless.
We can also call poor men and women in similar circumstances “widows.” They are vulnerable and desperate for help. Some are parents whose children have died from drug overdoses, or been victims of violence. Like the widow of Nain, these victims of powerful societal forces are also caught in a funeral procession of sorts.
Our prophets Elijah and Jesus reveal whose side God takes in dire circumstances. God is on the side of the “widows” — the ones who suffer and have no one to act or speak on their behalf. Jesus’ miracle shows God stopping the powerful force of death and giving hope of new life to the desperate. Elijah and Jesus acted for the good even though no specific request was made of them. Ours is a God of gratuitous goodness, coming to help us even before we ask. God’s Word also challenges the faithful community to do the same — act for the good before being asked.
Paul is very conscious that the good he has received from God was pure gift. God, he says, “was pleased to reveal his son to me so that I might proclaim him to the Gentiles.” The Christian community has also received the gift of Jesus Christ. Paul reminds us recipients of such a wonderful gift that now we too must proclaim Christ to others.
We proclaim Jesus Christ by doing what he did: coming to the aid of the “widows” of our world: whoever is alone, in desperate straits and in need our help. Pope Francis has declared this a “Year of Mercy.” He has called us to be in solidarity with the poor and find ways to reveal God’s love for them through our words and actions. Earlier in Luke’s Gospel Jesus gave us our marching orders, “Be merciful, just as your father is merciful” (Luke 6:36). It is what he did throughout his life and now, with the grace Paul has proclaimed, it is our turn to do the same.