A little boy named Leo turned to his mother and said, “Mom, I don’t want to go outside. It’s very dark.” His mother smiled gently at her son and said, “Leo, you don’t have to be afraid of the dark. Jesus is out there. He’ll look after you and he will protect you.” Little Leo looked at his mother and asked, “Are you sure Jesus is out there?”

“Yes,” Mom said. “I’m very sure. Jesus is everywhere and Jesus is always ready to help you, always when you need him.” Leo thought about it for a minute then went to the back door, opened the back door just a little bit, and peeking out into the darkness, Leo called, “Jesus, if you’re out there, would you please hand me the broom?”

Hey, you’re allowed to laugh. All right. I can take it. At times in life, we doubt. We lack faith. We seek proof. Sometimes trusting and showing compassion are very difficult for us. In today’s gospel, we listened, “The Lord was moved with pity upon seeing her and said to her, ‘Do not weep.'” The word pity struck me. Another word for pity is the word compassion. So Jesus moved with compassion, and compassion comes from the Greek word meaning to suffer with. To suffer with.

And the Lord Jesus will always take us by the hand and offer us compassion, forgiveness, mercy, second chances, new beginnings, new life. The Lord says, “Arise.” A nurse on the pediatric ward, before listening to children’s chests, would plug the stethoscope into their ears and let them listen to their own hearts. Their eyes would always light up in awe. But she never quite got the response that she did from one little four-year old boy, Joey.

Gently, she tucked the stethoscope into his ears and placed the disc over his heart. “Listen,” she said. “What do you suppose that is?” He closed his eyes and looked up, as if lost in some strange mystery of tap, tap, tapping, deep within his chest. His face broke out with this wondrous grin and he asked, “Is that Jesus knocking?” Jesus knocks at the doorstep of our hearts. And we always respond with compassion, forgiveness, love, and mercy.

Get up. Arise. For people do not care how much you know, but they want to know how much you care.