DOCTRINE AND FAITH
(Leviticus 13,1-2.45-6; 1 Cor 10,31-11,1; Mark 1,40-45: 6th Sunday of the Year; Year B: 11 Feb.2018)
In the first reading of last Sunday from the book of Job, the harshness of human life came out well. Today’s first reading from the book of Leviticus indicates that the life of a leper can also be quite distressful. In addition to the physical discomfort the leper had to endure, there were the social and religious estrangements as well as ritual alienation that were imposed. Lepers were deemed unclean, banished from the community, and required to keep their distance from others. If by chance, someone should unknowingly approach them, they were to warn them by crying out ‘Unclean, unclean!’ In fact, it was their very state of being unclean, not merely the physical condition itself that was thought to be contagious. Anyone who had direct contact with someone or something that was unclean was considered unclean. Clean and unclean were religious designations, and so the priest was involved in making such determinations. When the condition that made a person unclean no longer exists, it was necessary for the person to undergo some rite of purification before being readmitted into the community. It could have been that such social and religious alienation were so severe, that it was believed that the condition was brought on by some kind of sin (Numbers 12, 9-10). This made the one with leprosy not only physically loathsome and socially dangerous, but also morally reprehensible.
One can only visualise the agony and suffering of the leper. Suffering by its nature tends to alienate us from those who are healthy and secure. Leprosy may be an extreme example, but it reveals various aspects of suffering. First, there are the circumstances of the misfortune itself. These might include pain, anxiety, diminishment, and ultimately death. In addition, suffering can sap our energy, jeopardise everything we have achieved, and leave us unproductive and feeling worthless. There are also social consequences. Suffering reminds us of our own finitude and the contingent nature of life in totality.
In the gospel story of today a leper approached Jesus and requested to be made clean. Though socially alienated and ritually unclean, the man did not adhere to the laws governing those afflicted as he was. Instead, he boldly approached Jesus and begged to be made clean. It is interesting that he asked to be made clean, and not to be cured. Social and religious acceptability seem to be more important to him than physical healing. Jesus was moved with pity and touching the leper cured him. By this touch Jesus would have been ritually unclean himself. Besides, the touch that others expected would render Jesus unclean actually healed the man and restored him to the state of ritual purity. Jesus was not deterred by human suffering. He welcomes all that approaches him: he touches what might repel others. His healing touch reincorporates those who have been ostracised; his loving embrace re-associates those who have been alienated. In the kingdom of God there are no outsiders. All belong to Jesus and, therefore all belong to one other. Those who have been shunned because of some physical condition and social status have been brought back into the circle of the community and the community is made whole again. Human life is fraught with suffering, which follows us through the gamut of our human life. We only endure suffering and lose the opportunity it offers to come closer to Jesus. The time of suffering is a period we are vulnerable to God’s mercy, to the healing touch of Christ that can heal our souls and even our bodies. It is during suffering that we can authentically participate in the cross of Christ.
In our effort to understand the text of the first reading, it was insinuated above that leprosy could be as a result of sin. Considering the social, religious as well as the ritual alienation that were associated to leprosy, we can appreciate what sin de facto is: spiritual alienation from God. Sin is leprous. Sin is worse than leprosy. It alienates us from our God, and our community. If we are unfortunate to fall into the leprous grip of sin, we need the purifying touch of Jesus to make us clean, reconcile us to God the Father and restore us to our Christian community. Jesus heals us through the sacrament of Reconciliation.
In the second reading, Paul invites us to imitate Christ when he says: Be imitators of me as I imitate Christ. We are, therefore, called to imitate Christ. We are to be compassionate to those who stuffer, as Christ was to the leper, to sinners who are separated from their Christian community due to their faults and who no longer have any positive relationship with God and their brothers and sisters. Called to imitate Christ means that we have to do all things for the glory of God as Jesus did. On the other hand, we need to make effort to be in good relationship with everybody without seeking any personal advantages for ourselves; we are to do just as Paul did. In imitating Christ we need to always have before us the two dimensions of evangelical love: love towards God, that is to say, to do all for God’s glory and love towards others in union with God. We also imitate Christ by boldly shunning all social inhibitions as far as doing good to an afflicted brother or sister is concerned. If Jesus had adhered to the ritual laws forbidding contact with a leper he would have missed the opportunity of restoring purity to the leper and reinstating him back to his community. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye
garphics by chukwubike
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