He didn't jump up and he didn't fly away

Luke 7:11-17

¹¹Soon afterwards he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. ¹²As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. ¹³When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” ¹⁴Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, rise!” ¹⁵The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. ¹⁶Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has risen among us!” and “God has looked favorably on his people!” ¹⁷This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.

My kind calls this kind of story propaganda. The kind of passage deftly snipped out of the text by Thomas Jefferson for not being reasonable or realistic. My kind calls it symbolism - some quality was dead - hope, love, justice - something nice and abstract so that restoring it back to life doesn't smell bad. Raising it back to life could sound reasonable.

So I don't ask Jesus if he did this or how, but why? Isn't it better to leave the dead alone, to not upset what is natural? Isn't it more helpful to teach the living how to bear their grief?

You may be more sensible on this than me, he says. Her suffering was too much for me. I became weak in it, too. Had to stop it, had to help her. Wouldn't you?

I say, And later she would be the one he grieved. What about his suffering? Would you raise her, too? Would you just raise people all the time, so nobody dies? I don't see that happening.

No, I didn't raise her; I couldn't be there. I won't tell you something reassuring like: I could tell it was an old woman's time but not a young man's. This sort of thing is not reasonable and not at all fair. So much pain, always pain, everywhere pain. They only tell of the ones I could help. There were many others. No good reason for who or which. Maybe it is your work, to sit with the grieving.

Oh no, Lord. I don't know how I'd bear it. I'd take it into my body, my being.

Exactly. That's what happens. It has a terrible price. It was easier to raise the dead.

And you died, in the end. Did you really, you know, rise? My husband's people like to say, "He didn't jump up and he didn't fly away."

That's pretty funny. And - there are many ways to rise. I'm just saying.