Thoughts for the Day

When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him; and there was a leper who came to him and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.’ He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, ‘I do choose. Be made clean!’ Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Then Jesus said to him, ‘See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.’

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Leprosy is an age-old chronic infectious disease which is caused by a type of bacteria that affects the skin, and peripheral nerves, including the eyes, in particular. The World Health Organisation (WHO) report that it is present in 120 countries today. However Leprosy is curable, although both in the past and the present the deformities caused have led to terrible discrimination.

We can see this in the Hebrew scriptures where a man or woman has to keep two metres away from a leper and up to forty-five metres away if the wind is blowing towards them. The only thing more defiling than contact with a leper is contact with a dead body. So in the story of the healing in Matthew's gospel we should note how amazing it is that the leper comes into a crowd of people; that he kneels before Jesus and worships him; he calls him Lord; and requests, not demands, healing. Even more amazingly, Jesus touches the man, and then heals him.

The question for us, besides that of whether we have such humility when we ask Jesus for healing, is something entirely different. Today we should ask, who are our "lepers"? Whom do we shun? Whom do we ignore? Whom do we keep away from? Can we be totally honest with ourself, and with God? And can we make one small change in our life to acknowledge our "leper" when we come across them?

Lord Jesus Christ,
who stepped forward to touch the untouchable,
may we acknowledge our sin
in ignoring those in need,
and learn to accept all God's children
as being made in Your image
whether in sickness or in health.
May we learn to be inclusive
and not let appearance or manner
stop us from being welcoming and generous.
Amen.