Blame it on the heat. Time takes it easy in July. So does our liturgical calendar. We do honor 21 saints, among them Kateri Tekakwitha (14), a significant Native American presence among our holy ones. The roster of American saints expands as the last three popes have added many names to our list of up-and-coming role models.

Jesus goes beyond the customs and religious sensibilities of his people. He reacts favorably to a forbidden touch and challenges death to give back a life.

One of the surest ways to lose your audience is to introduce the subject of death. Our culture insulates us from the idea in as many ways as possible, worshipping youth and hiding the sick and dying from us. Even old age routinely gets a makeover so that we don’t have to look at graying hair, wrinkles, and age spots.

After Jesus crossed over by boat, a large crowd met him at the seaside. One of the meeting-place leaders named Jairus came. When he saw Jesus, he fell to his knees, beside himself as he begged, “My dear daughter is at death’s door. Come and lay hands on her so she will get well and live.” Jesus went with him, the whole crowd tagging along, pushing and jostling him.

I see him, cup in hand, every time I drive past that corner. He works it well every day, rain or shine, getting to know the regulars like me who are willing to roll down our windows and give him a dollar or two. I learned his name and he sometimes got close to pronouncing mine correctly. 

Generosity, Saint Paul tells the Corinthians, has a lot to do with equality. Because you have more, and others are in need, it makes sense to balance things out—to take from your surplus to make up for another’s deficit.

Daniel and his sister Daniela have been blind since birth, the consequence of a genetic disease. They were born in a rural area of Ghana, where resources are scarce and disease runs rampant. Before Daniel reached his teen years, his father died, and his mother struggled to keep herself and her four children alive.

With faith and trust, we ask for forgiveness from our merciful God.

Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.