There was a man called Lazarus, of Bethany, who had fallen sick. Bethany was the name of the village where Mary lived, with her sister Martha. And this Mary, whose brother Lazarus had now fallen sick, was the woman who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped His feet with her hair. The sisters sent a message to Him, to say, “Lord, he whom thou lovest lies here sick.” And Jesus said, on hearing it, “The end of this sickness is not death; it is meant for God’s honour, to bring honour to the Son of God.”
Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. At the time, then, after hearing the news, He waited for two days in the place where He was. And then, after that interval, He said to his disciples, “Let us go back into Judea.” So much He said, and then He told them, “Our friend Lazarus is at rest now; I am going there to awake him.”
When Jesus arrived, He found that Lazarus had already been four days in the grave. Since Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs away, many of the Jews had gone out there to comfort Martha and Mary over the loss of their brother. Martha, when she heard that Jesus had come, went out to meet Him, while Mary sat on in the house. “Lord,” said Martha to Jesus, “if Thou hadst been here, my brother would not have died; and I know well that even now God will grant whatever Thou wilt ask of Him.”
“Thy brother,” Jesus said to her, “will rise again.” Martha said to Him, “I know well enough that he will rise again at the resurrection, when the last day comes.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and life; he who believes in me, though he is dead, will live on; and whoever has life, and has faith in Me, to all eternity cannot die. Dost thou believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I have learned to believe that Thou art the Christ; Thou art the Son of the living God; it is for Thy coming the world has waited.”
And with that she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Master is here,” she said, “and bids thee come.” She rose up at once on hearing it, and went to Him. So Mary reached the place where Jesus was. And when she saw Him, she fell at His feet. “Lord,” she said, “if Thou hadst been here, my brother would not have died.” And Jesus, when He saw her in tears, and the tears of the Jews who accompanied her, sighed deeply, and distressed Himself over it. “Where have you buried him?” He asked. “Lord,” they said to Him, “come and see.” Then Jesus wept. “See,” said the Jews, “how He loved him.” (John 11:1-36)
I ask for prayers for the soul of Alexa Martin. She died on November 10, 2024 in a tragic car accident. With her died her 17-month-old daughter Zelie as well as her still unborn child. Her eight older children are now without a mother.
Alexa was a Traditional Catholic, whose family attends a CMRI church in Michigan. Three of her girls are members of my Sodality of Charity. She was a friend of Kevin Davis’ Catholic Family Podcast, and you can listen his request for prayers here.
Please pray for the repose of her soul and for the family and husband who are left behind sorrowing.
If you wish to support the family financially, to cover the funeral costs and help them in their need, you can do it here.
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