Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today's Mass Readings
Today’s first reading and the Gospel deal with the question of inclusivity and exclusivity. The Old Testament, for the times in which it was written was a rather forward-looking and inclusive. For example, when it came to orphans, widows, foreigners and the poor, the laws prescribed special care for them. There were some laws, though, that were rather oppressive. One of them had to do with lepers (Lev 13: 44-45). Remember, however, that leprosy was both contagious and incurable. From the point of view of society and its safety, the exclusion of lepers seemed reasonable. But from the perspective of the lepers, the law was oppressive for two reasons: first, it cut them off from their own families. Secondly, illness was considered to be a punishment from God. That is why, a leper went to the priest and not a physician to certify whether a person was infected or not. Once the priest declared the person unclean, the attitude of the entire society toward the person changed. They were scorned, excluded and ostracised from society. The leper could only fast and pray to win healing from God.
In this context, Jesus’ healing of the leper in today’s gospel reading is very telling. First, the healing itself says something important about Jesus: He is the Son of God. Second, the attitude of Jesus is impressive. Even though the law prescribed that one must exclude and avoid the leper, Jesus interacts with the person. Jesus goes against the normal practices of society. And by healing the leper, he not only restores the person’s health, but brings the leper back into communion. Jesus attitude is not exclusionary but inclusive. He did that with the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the demoniacs and the sinners. Even the most prodigal of son is restored back into communion.
On a personal level, if Jesus is saying anything to us today it is this: build communion. We may not be able to heal or perform miracles but God has give us the power to do good. Jesus does give us the power to unite people than divide. Jesus does give us the power to take care of one another irrespective of our race, sex, religion or nationality. Let us make a promise that we will not exclude other people because of their race, nationality, religion or sexual preference. Let us be imitators of Christ as we build communion with even the most neglected of people.
- Fr. Satish Joseph