Today’s Gospel is the story of Jesus healing a leper. While the disease of leprosy has been pretty much eradicated today there are still many people in society today who are treated as outcasts or lepers. Jesus teaches and shows us how we must respond to such outcasts. The leper comes to Jesus with a request trusting completely in Jesus: “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus reacts with mercy and compassion. While mercy and compassion can be attributes of human beings, they are always attributes of the one true God as St. Paul tells us: “God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us…” (Ephesians 2:4). Jesus shows us this one true God by his words and actions:
“Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said to him, ‘I do will it. Be made clean.’”
Both the leper and Jesus break the letter of the Torah. A leper should remain outside of villages and away from people:
“The individual shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ As long as the infection is present, the person shall be unclean. Being unclean, that individual shall dwell apart, taking up residence outside the camp.” (Leviticus 13:45-46).
This leper because of his great need “came to Jesus and kneeling begged him and said, ‘If you wish, you can make me clean.’” Jesus in turn instead of avoiding contact with this “unclean leper” out of compassion and mercy “stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said to him, ‘I do will it. Be made clean.’” Later Jesus will quote the prophet Hosea to teach that mercy and compassion can supersede the dictates of the Torah.
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (Matthew 9:12-13; Hosea 6:6)
“I say to you, something greater than the temple is here. If you knew what this meant, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned these innocent men.” (Matthew 12:6-7; Hosea 6:6).
As followers of Jesus we are instructed and challenged by Jesus’ teaching and action.
As we look at the many different outcasts in our world and in our country today let us be guided by God’s words and Jesus’ actions: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” Let us be people of mercy and compassion that we may be God’s holy people: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matthew 5:7).
Image: “19 One Leper returns to give thanks (color)” by fz1844 is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.