The first reading from the book of Tobit and the Gospel both tell us about seven husbands today. What a coincidence. Another coincidence that occurred in the first reading from the book of Tobit today is found in the last sentence of the last verse, At the same time that Tobit returned from the courtyard into his house, Sarah daughter of Raguel came down from her upper room”. Sarah and Tobit both turned to God in their suffering and prayed at the same time, and God heard both of their prayers. Have you ever been in prayer before the blessed sacrament in adoration or while attending mass and noticed all the other Catholics who are praying at the same exact time you are? It’s pretty amazing that God hears everyone’s prayers even when they pray at the same moment in time.
But, this is beside the point. Tobit and Sarah both were terribly heartbroken and suffering in the first reading today. Tobit lost his sight, and Sarah lost all seven of her husbands before she ever even had a chance to become a married woman. There is something that is important to learn from both of them, but especially Sarah in today’s first reading today. Sarah had reached such a state of misery and suffering that she felt like she couldn’t take another day of it and wanted to commit suicide. With many people who commit suicide there is a chemical imbalance that causes these feelings and they are not aware of the cause of their suffering. However, Sarah knew the cause of her suffering and she wanted to take her own life rather than endure the insults and abuse that the deaths of her husbands caused her. The demonic attacks that caused the deaths of her husbands had become a curse that she felt like she just couldn’t live with anymore. Life seemed pretty hopeless at at particular moment in time. There was no life or joy that could be seen at the end of the tunnel.
What is important to notice about Sarah though, is that she stopped for a second and thought of her father. This was a very profoundly loving act because many people who think about committing suicide do not really understand how their deaths will affect their family and friends. They just want the suffering to end. Depression and suffering are not a permanent condition in life though. Eventually depression and suffering will come to an end and joy will return to a person’s life. It is very difficult to picture hope for the future when the moment you are living in is unbearable though.
However, what is important about Sarah’s choice is that even though she had lost all hope, she reached out to God in prayer. She stretched her hands out toward the window where the sunshine may have been streaming in and prayed. Sarah thought of her father and how much she loved him and the suffering her death would cause him for the rest of his life. Sarah chose to live rather than cause her father this suffering, but she knew she did not have the strength to do so on her own. Only God could help her face the cruel persecution and abuse by those in her own household in the days to come. Instead of blaming God for her misfortune and suffering though, Sarah praised Him.Sarah just praised God. She left her sorrow in His hands and praised Him in her prayers. Is it any wonder that God heard her prayers and immediately sent an angel to earth to answer them?
Tobit was suffering just as much as Sarah and wanted to die too. Tobit actually prayed and asked God to let him die. Sometimes God answers our prayers and sometimes He doesn’t. When God doesn’t answer them, as in Tobit’s case, it is for a good reason. God had something better planned for him than death. Sometimes God does not answer our prayers either, because He has something else in mind that is even better than what we asked for. So, we should never blame God or get upset with Him if he does not answer our prayers.God gave Sarah a husband and God gave Tobit his sight. God’s will was done in both cases and that was a more excellent gift than either could have possibly imagined at the time they prayed.
God gives each one of us the gift of eternal LIFE through his son Jesus Christ though.Jesus told us in today’s gospel that “He is not God of the dead, but of the living” and that we will not marry or be given in marriage in heaven. What a beautiful gift this will be to become free spirits like the angels in heaven when we die though.Married couples who love one another deeply may be afraid that they will not be married in heaven one day, or they may not be together in heaven, but there is no need to fear this. We will have no need to raise families in heaven because we will already be a family there. Love is what will draw us together when we reach heaven. Love forms the family of God, not the formalities that we observe here on earth.
Whether we are married or single, we should not worry too much about what happens when we die, but rather what happens today while we are living. Let us praise God’s goodness today and trust our future to His loving care.Let tomorrow worry about itself, because today we reside safely in God’s hands.
