FROM THE PULPIT SIXTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR B IN ORDINARY TIME BY FATHER BENOIT MUKAMBA
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SIXTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR B IN ORDINARY TIME
SCRIPTURE: Leviticus 13: 1-2, 45-46; Psalm 32; 1 Corinthians 10: 31-11: 1; Mark 1: 40-45.
REFLECTION: Reconciliation in Jesus Christ.
Fr. Benoit Mukamba, CSSp.
Saint Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthians in today’s second reading appears to carry the core message of all the readings of our celebration. “Whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or the Church of God” (1Cor 10:31). The Mosaic Law prescribes the manner of dealing with a person who carries apparent symptoms of leprosy; and the Gospel tells of the healing of a leper.
In old days, Leprosy was feared and treated with a form of superstition. This disease was not precisely what modern medicine classifies as leprosy or Hansen’s disease, but included all kinds of skin illnesses. The most important dimension of leprosy in the Bible was considering it as a manifestation of the loss of spiritual purity; therefore the leper became unfit to participate in the community worship. The patient had to show oneself to the Priest who diagnosed the illness as a minister of the Law of Moses, putting the patient into quarantine or reinsertion into the community once cured. The story of Miriam’s leprosy, the sister of Moses stands as a typical illustration of such understanding of the illness [Numbers 12: 1-15]. The healing of the leper reminds me of the movie, The Apostle of Molokai, Father Damien, which I once watched during my days in the seminary. Father Damien, a young priest from Belgium, visited Hawaii and then arrived on the island of Molokai. There he noticed that lepers were treated as though they were criminals; they were forced to live in colonies under laws that separated them from the rest of the society like in the days of Moses and the Israelites. Some of them were simply put into cages and dumped into the sea. Seeing the miseries of the lepers, Father Damien decided to live with them and help them. He saw the suffering men and women. He prefered to respond to the needs of fellow human beings rather than running away from illness. Finally he became one of the lepers. Later the Church recognized his heroic love for Christ through the lepers and canonized him as Saint Damien. Pope Benedict XVI once spoke,
“According to the ancient Jewish law, leprosy was considered not only an illness, but the most serious form of ‘impurity,’” he said. “In leprosy, it is possible to glimpse a symbol of sin, which is the true impurity of the heart that can separate us from God. … If the sins that we commit are not confessed with humility and trust in the divine mercy, they can even reach the point of producing the death of the soul.” Jesus has changed this paradigm by touching the leper and restoring his purity of heart and body. Leprosy just like Sin makes a person an outcast and an individual separated from God and fellow humans. Such an outcast person needs to surrender oneself to the will of Jesus and his power to heal. In return Jesus would willfully reach out and touch the person seeking reconciliation and bring healing of spirit and body.
As Christians, we are called to discover the lepers of our time, the outcasts of our society and respond to their needs by showing them compassion. Since the emergency of the Coronavirus pandemic, we have experienced quarantines, shut-downs and social distancing and masking. But many of our elder members have suffered isolation and abandonment as we cannot visit with them. Since Covid-19 dying and death have become so lonely. As disciples of Jesus, we are invited to reach out to the outcasts to bring them into the community and be in communion with them. Let us remember that we have been empowered with the healing touch of Jesus Christ to bridge the gaps that separate people, to bring reconciliation and reunification. Let us do everything for the glory of God; not offending anyone because of their creed, nationality, color or social status. Let us keep on loving the sinner and hate the sin following the examples of Father Damien and the Lord Jesus Himself.
