6th Sun in Ordinary Time Year B
Gospel of Mark 1:40-45
Homily by Deacon Joe Stackhouse
February 12, 2012
The story about Jesus healing the man with leprosy is a story about faith in God. Today, we tend to think of faith in fairly static terms. In modern terms, having faith in God is commonly understood as believing that he exists, while the content of faith itself is often viewed as a set of beliefs about God. This understanding does not do justice to how the ancient Hebrews understood faith. For them, faith was a two way street. God wanted and sought out a relationship with his people. They responded and entered that relationship by placing their hope and trust in God.
For the ancient Hebrews, faith was an active relationship with God built on a lively belief that God would make good on his promises; that God would indeed do as he said he would. Their lives centered on their faith, which in turn, shaped and influenced the way they lived. In other words, faith in God was a matter of living in a vibrant, dynamic relationship with God. Isaiah expressed faith in exactly these terms when he foretold that God would bring liberation and renewed life to his oppressed people. The prophecy of Isaiah is that God himself will be their savior. This was the basis of the hope and trust that the ancient Hebrews had in the Lord.
This is the background for the story of healing in today’s gospel. That story begins with the first reading from the Book of Leviticus. The ritual provisions in Leviticus led to a rather gloomy predicament for a leper in the ancient world. According to those provisions, lepers were forbidden to come into the city at all, or to live with any others. They had to live apart as though they were dead persons (Josephus).
Such persons lived apart not only because they had a contagious disease. The leper was considered unclean under Mosaic Law because the disease itself was viewed as a punishment for sin. Thus, the leper was no longer holy before God. For this reason, the leper was cut off from the living faith community, and stood to forfeit for all time his or her relationship with God and with others.
The only available remedy in the ancient world was to be healed through a direct intervention by God (Ex. 15:26), or through an appeal to God’s mercy and compassion by a prophet, such as Moses, Elisha, or Isaiah (Ex. 15:25; II Kings 2:21; II Kings 20:7–8). Either way, the one who was afflicted with the disease was expected to pray and fast for healing.
The fortunate person who experienced a cure still had to undergo a process of purification as specified in the Book of Leviticus. First, the person went to the priest, who affirmed that the cure had indeed taken place. Then and only then did the priest initiate the purification process. The priest, however, did nothing to promote the cure. His rituals were performed only after the disease had passed (Dt. 24:8–9).
This context gives deeper meaning to the story in Mark’s gospel. Notice that the man with leprosy does not ask Jesus for healing. Rather, he begs Jesus to make him clean. He says, "If you wish, you can make me clean." This approach alone reveals humility and courage on the part of the leper, as well as hope and trust. For, under Mosaic Law, because he still had the disease, he should not have approached Jesus, and under the Law, Jesus should not have touched him. His desperate need to be among the living once again, however, compels the man to seek Jesus. And, in his compassion, Jesus meets the man where he is. Their encounter shows that hope, trust and compassion are deeper than law and ritual. It also shows that the relationship between believer and Jesus is personal.
The actual request of the leper in these circumstances reveals even more. In essence, his request acknowledges Jesus’ divine power to heal, as well as his authority to forgive sins and welcome the sinner back into the faith community. The leper approaches Jesus with hope for a cure, and he trusts Jesus to respond with compassion. In placing his hope and trust in the person of Jesus Christ to make good on his request, the man with leprosy reveals the true nature of faith in God as a matter of hope and trust. And, Jesus responds to and affirms the authenticity of such faith when he ignores all taboo and stretches out his hand, touches the man, and says, “I do will it. Be made clean."
There are other such stories of those in need of healing who reach out to Jesus, despite social and religious convention to the contrary: Jairus, whose daughter was dying; the woman with the hemorrhage who touched Jesus' cloak; the Roman centurion whose servant was ill. Like the man with leprosy, these folks did not follow social convention or stand on religious ceremony before approaching Jesus. And, Jesus responded to them as he did to the leper—where they were and in their need.
The life and mission of Jesus makes it clear that he is willing to respond to us, and that he wants us to dare to seek him. Jesus wants a relationship with us and he seeks us out. For this reason, Jesus did not restrict who may seek him. Clearly, the man with leprosy sought Jesus WHEN he was in need of healing, BEFORE he was clean. Jesus is not saying: Get holy, and then knock on the door. Rather, Jesus is saying: Knock on the door and I will show you how to be holy. From this personal standpoint, the question may be: What do we want from Jesus. What do we ask for? What do we seek? Where do we knock?
Although each of us will answer these questions in different ways, the encounter between Jesus and the man with leprosy demonstrates that we can approach Jesus no matter what our circumstances. Jesus meets us where we are. He looks for and is eager to respond to the faith that each of us can muster. We can trust that Jesus will respond to our needs with compassion. That is the nature of his love. Our hope is that the man with leprosy will inspire and strengthen our own faith as we seek to follow Jesus more closely in our daily lives.
Showing posts with label Homily 3rd Sunday Ordinary Time Year B. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homily 3rd Sunday Ordinary Time Year B. Show all posts
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Friday, January 20, 2012
Come Follow Me
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B 2012
Gospel of Mark 1:14-20, January 22, 2012
Homily by Deacon Joe Stackhouse
The story of Jesus calling Peter and his companions in today’s gospel is a rather dramatic story that Mark sums up in just a few lines. The pattern is similar to the other gospel accounts of this encounter. Jesus suddenly shows up in ordinary circumstances, apparently as a stranger, and initiates a conversation with the disciples. Without much fanfare and quite unexpectedly, Jesus invites them to follow him, to take a different path in life.
Jesus provides no details and no hint as to what this might mean for the disciples. The goodness and love of Jesus are so magnetic, however, that the disciples immediately stop what they are doing and do as Jesus says. They begin to follow him. They show no hesitation in placing their trust and confidence in Jesus. Were this to happen today, we would consider their response in such circumstances downright irrational.
And yet, Jesus extends exactly this invitation to us today in much the same way, except that Jesus is no stranger to us. We know more about Jesus than his first disciples knew. Even so, Jesus calls everyone to follow him when he says, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it” (Lk 9:23-24). Jesus’ challenge reflects an ancient call to conversion based on fidelity to God as the foundational principle and structure of our lives (cf. 1 Sm 12:14).
Often our response, however, is to choose the lesser god, just as the rich man chose to keep his possessions rather than sell them all, give to the poor, and follow Jesus (Mt 19:21-22). Thus, we have a persistent need for conversion. As Jesus demonstrates with the call of the first disciples, God always takes the initiative. He does not wait for us to look for him; he comes looking for us in the ordinary circumstances of our lives. Following Christ begins with this personal encounter with Jesus, a personal call from God. The encounter compels a response from us. The way we get up and live our lives is in fact our response to this divine call.
In practice, conversion is a life-long journey to manifest the image of God in our lives. Conversion is a central theme in Scripture and key to a biblical understanding of human nature. From a biblical perspective, the mystery of humankind cannot be understood apart from the mystery of God (Congar). This is what motivates St. Paul to claim that, because Christ himself is the perfect image of God (2 Cor 4:4; Col 1:15; Heb 1:3), we must conform ourselves to him (Rom 8:29). According to Paul, our conversion comes about through the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:23). And, Jesus guarantees the outcome in defining himself as the way, the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6).
Following the way of Jesus is a choice and commitment that we deliberately fulfill through our love for others that stems from, and is determined by, our love of God. Love is the overarching moral principle and measure of all human action. Christ emphasized the preeminence of this principle when he said that the greatest commandment is to love God with one’s whole heart and soul and one’s neighbor as oneself (Mk 12:28-34; Mt 22:37-40).
Christ did more than simply call attention to a similar commandment found in Deuteronomy (cf.Dt 6:4-6). Christ made love of God and neighbor his own commandment and enriched it with a new meaning. He did so by equating Himself with each of us as the object of love when He said, “As long as you did it for one of these, the least of my brethren, you did it for me” (Mt 25:40). In this way, Christ “bound the whole human race to Himself as a family through a supernatural solidarity” (Congar). From this standpoint, he established charity as the chief mark of His disciples, saying, ‘By this will all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another’” (Jn 13:35).
Love binds us to each other and to God in a dynamic, interconnected relationship. The result is that whatever we do for the “least of his children” we do to and for Christ himself (Mt 25:35). Jesus’ teaching clearly shows that God abides in each human being, and thus whatever we do for the “Other”, we do for God. Likewise, whatever we do to the “Other”, we do to God.
Jesus’ teaching about love of God and neighbor is profound and often challenging because it requires us to see others with the eyes of the soul. With secular eyes, many of the “least” don’t look as we imagine God. Many of the least may look to us, at worst, as demons, and at best, as unproductive and lazy. The least may frighten us, be different from us, or seem undeserving. Serving the least from the perspective of Christ is counter-cultural. Lobbying for the least also may be viewed as unpatriotic.
By contrast, Jesus shows us that we are all equals in our need for love and concern (Lk 10:30-37). In this sense, we are all the least of his brethren. Jesus invites us to do as he does by showing love and compassion for our companion sojourners, however difficult and costly, for this is the true nature of his love. When we follow Jesus, we pattern our spiritual lives after the example of Jesus. We put on the mind of Christ, as St. Paul says. Then we are able to see things as Jesus sees them, with the eyes of love, and be the kind of person Jesus is.
The one major goal of Jesus on earth was to do the will of his heavenly Father. Following Jesus means doing the same thing. We can do the will of God by believing in Jesus and imitating his actions and values in our own lives. Our call is to verify the image and likeness of God in our lives by loving God and loving others as ourselves.
Jesus calls us to this kind of conversion because he wants us to be like God. Jesus continually calls us to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect by following in his steps and imitating him (Mt 5:48).
Gospel of Mark 1:14-20, January 22, 2012
Homily by Deacon Joe Stackhouse
The story of Jesus calling Peter and his companions in today’s gospel is a rather dramatic story that Mark sums up in just a few lines. The pattern is similar to the other gospel accounts of this encounter. Jesus suddenly shows up in ordinary circumstances, apparently as a stranger, and initiates a conversation with the disciples. Without much fanfare and quite unexpectedly, Jesus invites them to follow him, to take a different path in life.
Jesus provides no details and no hint as to what this might mean for the disciples. The goodness and love of Jesus are so magnetic, however, that the disciples immediately stop what they are doing and do as Jesus says. They begin to follow him. They show no hesitation in placing their trust and confidence in Jesus. Were this to happen today, we would consider their response in such circumstances downright irrational.
And yet, Jesus extends exactly this invitation to us today in much the same way, except that Jesus is no stranger to us. We know more about Jesus than his first disciples knew. Even so, Jesus calls everyone to follow him when he says, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it” (Lk 9:23-24). Jesus’ challenge reflects an ancient call to conversion based on fidelity to God as the foundational principle and structure of our lives (cf. 1 Sm 12:14).
Often our response, however, is to choose the lesser god, just as the rich man chose to keep his possessions rather than sell them all, give to the poor, and follow Jesus (Mt 19:21-22). Thus, we have a persistent need for conversion. As Jesus demonstrates with the call of the first disciples, God always takes the initiative. He does not wait for us to look for him; he comes looking for us in the ordinary circumstances of our lives. Following Christ begins with this personal encounter with Jesus, a personal call from God. The encounter compels a response from us. The way we get up and live our lives is in fact our response to this divine call.
In practice, conversion is a life-long journey to manifest the image of God in our lives. Conversion is a central theme in Scripture and key to a biblical understanding of human nature. From a biblical perspective, the mystery of humankind cannot be understood apart from the mystery of God (Congar). This is what motivates St. Paul to claim that, because Christ himself is the perfect image of God (2 Cor 4:4; Col 1:15; Heb 1:3), we must conform ourselves to him (Rom 8:29). According to Paul, our conversion comes about through the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:23). And, Jesus guarantees the outcome in defining himself as the way, the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6).
Following the way of Jesus is a choice and commitment that we deliberately fulfill through our love for others that stems from, and is determined by, our love of God. Love is the overarching moral principle and measure of all human action. Christ emphasized the preeminence of this principle when he said that the greatest commandment is to love God with one’s whole heart and soul and one’s neighbor as oneself (Mk 12:28-34; Mt 22:37-40).
Christ did more than simply call attention to a similar commandment found in Deuteronomy (cf.Dt 6:4-6). Christ made love of God and neighbor his own commandment and enriched it with a new meaning. He did so by equating Himself with each of us as the object of love when He said, “As long as you did it for one of these, the least of my brethren, you did it for me” (Mt 25:40). In this way, Christ “bound the whole human race to Himself as a family through a supernatural solidarity” (Congar). From this standpoint, he established charity as the chief mark of His disciples, saying, ‘By this will all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another’” (Jn 13:35).
Love binds us to each other and to God in a dynamic, interconnected relationship. The result is that whatever we do for the “least of his children” we do to and for Christ himself (Mt 25:35). Jesus’ teaching clearly shows that God abides in each human being, and thus whatever we do for the “Other”, we do for God. Likewise, whatever we do to the “Other”, we do to God.
Jesus’ teaching about love of God and neighbor is profound and often challenging because it requires us to see others with the eyes of the soul. With secular eyes, many of the “least” don’t look as we imagine God. Many of the least may look to us, at worst, as demons, and at best, as unproductive and lazy. The least may frighten us, be different from us, or seem undeserving. Serving the least from the perspective of Christ is counter-cultural. Lobbying for the least also may be viewed as unpatriotic.
By contrast, Jesus shows us that we are all equals in our need for love and concern (Lk 10:30-37). In this sense, we are all the least of his brethren. Jesus invites us to do as he does by showing love and compassion for our companion sojourners, however difficult and costly, for this is the true nature of his love. When we follow Jesus, we pattern our spiritual lives after the example of Jesus. We put on the mind of Christ, as St. Paul says. Then we are able to see things as Jesus sees them, with the eyes of love, and be the kind of person Jesus is.
The one major goal of Jesus on earth was to do the will of his heavenly Father. Following Jesus means doing the same thing. We can do the will of God by believing in Jesus and imitating his actions and values in our own lives. Our call is to verify the image and likeness of God in our lives by loving God and loving others as ourselves.
Jesus calls us to this kind of conversion because he wants us to be like God. Jesus continually calls us to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect by following in his steps and imitating him (Mt 5:48).
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