Today's Gospel reading contains two healing accounts - the raising of the ruler's daughter and the healing of the woman with haemorrhage. The evangelist emphasizes the 'faith' which both the woman and the ruler had in Jesus' healing power. Their personal encounter with Jesus allows the healing to be effected.

The woman with the haemorrhage touched Jesus' garment expecting a magical cure yet the healing took place at the moment when Jesus said to her: 'Your faith has made you well.' Because of her faith Jesus brought salvation within her reach and experience.

In the case of the ruler's daughter, Jesus said, "Depart, the girl is not dead but is asleep." For Jesus, it is as easy to raise a dead person to life as for anyone to awaken one who is sleeping. This is possible because Jesus is the Lord of Life and Death and thus raised the girl to life.

The Greek word for 'arose' is also the word used consistently of Jesus' own resurrection from the dead. Similarly, in the first reading, we see how Jacob's dream was materialized and he realized that 'Truly, Yahweh is in this place and I never knew it.' This awareness helps Jacob see what it entailed to build the House of God and to return to God what God gave him.