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“The Leper”
by Alexandre Bida, c. 1880 |
Readings for Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time [1]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
Readings and Commentary: [3]
Reading 1: Hebrews 3:7-14
The Holy Spirit says:
Oh, that today you would hear his voice,
“Harden not your hearts as at the rebellion
in the day of testing in the desert,
where your ancestors tested and tried me
and saw my works for forty years.
Because of this I was provoked with that generation
and I said, ‘They have always been of erring heart,
and they do not know my ways.’
As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter into my rest.’”
Take care, brothers and sisters,
that none of you may have an evil and unfaithful heart,
so as to forsake the living God.
Encourage yourselves daily while it is still “today,”
so that none of you may grow hardened by the deceit of sin.
We have become partners of Christ
if only we hold the beginning of the reality firm until the end.
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Commentary on Heb 3:7-14
In this selection from the letter to the Hebrews there is a paraphrase of Psalm 95:7-11. These strophes of the psalm are concerned with the loss of faith by the Hebrews as Moses led them out of Egypt. The focus of the section is the main theme of Hebrews, which is to implore the reader not to lose exuberance for the faith or to become weary because of the journey. The communal spirit of mutual encouragement is exhorted. As the author reminds the Hebrew converts, they are one in Christ.
CCC: Heb 3:7-4:11 1165
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95:6-7c, 8-9, 10-11
R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works.”
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Forty years I was wearied of that generation;
I said: “This people’s heart goes astray,
they do not know my ways.”
Therefore I swore in my anger:
“They shall never enter my rest.”
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
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Commentary on Ps 95:6-7c, 8-9, 10-11
We hear the very familiar strains of the Invitatory Psalm from the Divine Office today. The psalm is a song of praise and thanksgiving, with a historical reminder of all that God has done for the people he loves. Today it supports the reading from Hebrews 3:7-14, as we are enjoined not to rebel against God because the journey is so difficult.
CCC: Ps 95:1-6 2628; Ps 95:7-8 2659; Ps 95:7 1165; Ps 95:9 2119; Ps 95:10 539
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Gospel: Mark 1:40-45
A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said,
“If you wish, you can make me clean.”
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, and said to him,
“I do will it. Be made clean.”
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
Then he said to him, “See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them.”
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
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Commentary on Mk 1:40-45
St. Mark’s account of this incident is almost identical to that of St. Luke (see Luke 5:12-16). This healing occurs after the leper demonstrates faith that Jesus can accomplish this feat, even though there are only two times in Old Testament Scripture when this was done (Numbers 12:10-15; 2 Kings 5:1-14). In this account of Jesus curing the leper, we see two remarkable details. First, it was Hebrew law that those designated as “unclean” could not approach anyone closer than about ten feet. This leper was clearly much closer. He was close enough to Jesus that he “stretched out his hand, and touched him.” Not just with a word was this leper made clean. The Lord touched him, which by Hebrew law was taboo. In one action the Lord demonstrates his power over the disease and his authority over the law.
Jesus asks the leper not to tell anyone how this was accomplished, but to show the Hebrew priest he was clean and be allowed to rejoin the community. The leper did not remain silent about what had happened, so the Lord is mobbed by those seeking God’s favor. Unlike the account in St. Luke, Jesus does not embrace the notoriety but withdraws to deserted places. Nonetheless, people seek him out, "coming to him from everywhere.”
CCC: Mk 1:40-41 2616; Mk 1:41 1504
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Reflection:
The story from the Gospel of St. Mark about Jesus healing the leper provides us with a foundation for our belief in the forgiveness of sins Jesus brings to the contrite. The elements of that reconciliation are all there.
The leper comes to Jesus in faith. He even provides us with language we use prior to receiving the Eucharist “If you wish, you can make me clean.” We will declare that it is not though our merit that he offers this precious gift, but at his word.
To that profound and humble offering of faith, the Lord responds that it is his will that the leper be restored to health. What comes next is truly remarkable. Against the prohibition of the Law of Moses, which forbids lepers to come within roughly ten feet of those not also infected, “he (Jesus) stretched out his hand, touched the leper and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.”” It is not just a simple healing that takes place, but it makes the leper, the outcast and the infirmed, whole; one again with his family and friends. He will be seen now as one beloved of God, favored by his faithfulness.
We see in this simple story, one of the less spectacular healings recorded in Scripture, an example of what Christ brings us, what he offers in the most holy sacrifice of the altar. He reaches out and touches us, and we, through his grace, are made clean, sanctified, and made holy, a vessel of God’s love.
The two elements that make this possible are there for our taking. Christ is always there, anxious to offer his love and forgiveness. It was for this reason he came, that we all might see the incredible mercy of God. All that is missing is faith, and it is we who must bring that faith to the feast he provides.
Today we once more recall Christ’s encounter with the leper, an unworthy outcast who represents all of us. We once more pray that God will heal us from all sin, and touch us with his grace.
Pax
[1] The picture used today is “The Leper” by Alexandre Bida, c. 1880.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
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