A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched him, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Mark 1:40-42
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched him, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Mark 1:40-42
Can you imagine what it must have been like for the leper to be able to rejoin his community? Not only did Jesus heal him from his physical ailment – from his pain and suffering, but he restored him to society. Once again he’d be able to walk the streets of town without shouting “UNCLEAN, UNCLEAN” as he went. He could stop and chat with the men of the town, perhaps hold his children on his lap. Obviously we don’t know the circumstances, but we can guess.
Living in community is oftentimes difficult for me. I have a constant fear that people are going to hurt me, so it’s safer to fade into the background, and stay to myself. I am also lazy and selfish – living in community takes effort. To do so you need to value the people around you instead of focusing on yourself. It’s a lot of work!
In my case I have the option to live outside the community – in the leper’s case, it was the law. In today’s world we force people to fringe of society for reasons other than leprosy – usually because they cause us fear of some sort. They may be looking for jobs, or maybe they think differently than we do, or maybe it’s just because they look and act differently than we do. We push them away instead of, like Jesus, bringing them into the community. Who are you pushing to the edges?
Please share your thoughts with us by posting a comment.
I read the the blog on Saturday. I've always loved this story, so I was interested in what would be the blog entry. I read it, about forgiving, and healing etc. Since none of this mentioned my favorite part, I figured I was picking up the most minor part of the story being told. So, I just went on my way.
ReplyDeleteI am out West visiting one of my kids, so this morning's worship was in a very small - half hispanic, half english church with an hispanic celebrant. I'm new to this community, but am so impressed with their bonds, and their serious commitment to worship, which small parishes can also accomplish. The homilist this morning was the woman who runs their RCIA program. She picked the story's friends who loved the paralytic so much they not only brought him to Jesus, but would do anything - including go up on the roof, open it and lower their friend to Jesus. She said we need know who it is who we would help like this, and know who would help us/ love us enough to carry us to our healing. The miracle she said was also the love of the man's friends, and how they reflect the kind of love Jesus came to teach us to show others. The Christian journey is not a solo effort, it's one we do with others.
That's why I love this story, too. I'd not be who I am without others who have taught me, brought me to healing.
Admittedly, the real point is Jesus' power to forgive sins, but ... I like thinking about getting to forgiveness/healing isn't a solo journey.