Curing of Leper (Mk 1: 40 - 45)

In our present age, with the advancement of medical science, it is not common to encounter a leper (depending on which part of the world you are in) on the streets. Yet, I wonder what will my reaction be, should I meet one. Will I cringe at what I see or will I run for the fear for my life?

What I saw in Jesus during the Gospel Reading (Feb 15) is more than another healing miracle. It helps me better understand the nature and personhood of our Lord Jesus. Today’s healing was more than breaking the rules to “work” (heal) on the Sabbath or the touching of an unclean man. It is about overcoming our basic instinctual needs for survival. Even before He displayed His great love for us in dying on the cross, we can already catch the sneak preview of this crazy lover – a God who loves us (His creation) more than his own life.

Just a few years back, I found myself playing the role of the leper. It was during the SARS period, whereby the slightest tinge of cough or running nose will get people around you paranoid. I was down with a dry cough one day while attending a bible class. It must have been the cold air that got me coughing a while. Suddenly a lady who was sitting next to me just turn and said that perhaps if I’m not feeling well, I shouldn’t be there. I can understand where she is coming from and I do think that there is some truth in what she said. But what made it slightly difficult to accept was that it came from a fellow sister in the community – and to be more specific, a Christian community. What I would really have long to hear was at least a concern (if I was ok), instead of being condemn as a burden to the community.

So, although we will never encounter a physical “leper” today, but there are still many “lepers” around us. They come in the guise of people who long for our acceptance and care. In today’s context, perhaps lepers no longer come in the form of patients but they can still appear as “outcasts” – those who may be socially inept, slow or loud. A few times at work, I’ve also caught myself behaving like one who condemns. Sometimes, my overtly concern for efficiency can overtake my concern for a fellow colleague’s well-being. This reflection serves as a reminder for me on what it feels like to be treated like a leper. I pray for the strength to love like Jesus did – a love beyond my own self. Perhaps it is only then, can I really reach out beyond myself to bring healing, & integration to others.

Today, I like to pay tribute to Blessed Damien. (See biography A or B ) He will be canonized this year by Pope Benedict. A saint who reminded us of the presence of God in the world (1840 – 1889). A saint who loved to the point of being one with his charge. A saint who understood that people are succumbing not to leprosy but abandonment and condemnation.

“I make myself a leper with the lepers to gain all to Jesus Christ.”
~ Blessed Damien of Molokai