We all remember what it was like to be separated from one another at the height of the pandemic, and the profound effects of such separation on our souls and spirits. It was difficult not to despair. The leper in Mark’s Gospel must know similar despair. Following the rules found in Leviticus, the leper has been taken to the priest and declared unclean, not as a punishment, but as an invitation to do the right thing and accept separation from the community for the good of that community. The leper acknowledges his responsibility to others and cares enough for those in his community to respect the rules of distance and separation.
But Jesus’ appearance in Galilee gives the man hope, and he reaches out – an extraordinary gesture, given his condition – with humble faith in Jesus’ ability to heal him: If you wish, you can make me clean. Jesus accepts his request: I do will it. Be made clean. Once the man shows himself to the priest, he will be restored to community. As in Psalm 32, he has turned to the Lord in time of trouble, and God fills him with the joy of salvation. The man’s liberation, not only from continuous discomfort and pain, but from the necessary separation from those he loved, must have overwhelmed him, giving him an immediate connection to Jesus his savior. Is it any surprise that he publicizes the whole matter, even though Jesus asks him not to? His experience is, from beginning to end, extraordinary. One imagines he can barely contain himself!
We all have a responsibility to our community. Think back to all the masks and social distancing and sacrifice of years past. In his Letter to the Corinthians, Paul is grappling with reports of a group of Christians who are manifestly not fulfilling their responsibility to one another. Some Christians have been eating meat sacrificed to pagan idols, showing an unfortunate cultural insensitivity. Their actions belie the fact that their membership in a community requires that they respect all members, care for all members, try to please all members in every way, and all for the glory of God and the benefit of the many. Only then will they truly foster the kind of community they are called to be, a community grounded not in sin but in compassion. For only when we are open to the restoration of all to community can we truly be imitators of Christ. Only then will we know the full joy of salvation Jesus offers us at every turn. Only then can we embrace one another in love and fellowship, a fellowship in which no one is deemed unclean, and all are one, united in our community of faith.
This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class (February 2021).
Image source: www.wordclouds.com
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