At the time that Jesus lived, leprosy was probably the worst disease that a person could have. Once discovered, the individual was ostracized from the community and left to die with others who had the same infirmity.

The leper who approached Jesus says to him: “If you wish, you can make me clean: what hope this poor man placed in Jesus! And because of his confidence in Jesus’ ability to heal, he is offered a new beginning. Jesus, in his infinite mercy reaches out and actually touches the leper – which would NOT have been the thing to do! Jesus breaks through the preconceived notion that a person who has leprosy can only go off somewhere remote and die. Jesus gave this man new life- offered him a new beginning.

Although leprosy doesn’t exist in our modern world thanks to the advances of medicine over the years, this gospel image is still a powerful one. It can become a symbol or an allegory for all those kinds of things that can happen to us that lead us to a conclusion that our life is over, and we are not just referring to physical or terminal illness. There are other things that can isolate people and make them feel their life is hopeless.

So there is Jesus, the healer, coming onto the scene and destroying “death” and giving life with the words: “ I do will it. Be made clean.” So pray for healing, have confidence in the Lord’s power, know that he can heal and free us from sin and death in whatever form they might appear. But we also must be patient and persevering. The healing may not occur as instantaneously as described in the gospel. Yet, a strong desire to pray, and a faithfulness to prayer every day will indeed allow Jesus to slowly but powerfully change our hearts. The miracle will come, but perhaps not in the way that we expect!

Weekly Message for Sunday, February 12, 2012

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