A Leper Came to Jesus

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 77

Is-Sitt Ħadd matul is-Sena –  Sena 'B'

Messalin 'B' pp 366

Reading 1                        LeViticus 13:1-2, 44-46

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch which appears to be the sore of leprosy, he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest, or to one of the priests among his descendants. If the man is leprous and unclean, the priest shall declare him unclean by reason of the sore on his head. “The one who bears the sore of leprosy shall keep his garments rent and his head bare, and shall muffle his beard; he shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean, since he is in fact unclean. He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp.” This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Ewwel Lezzjoni        -      mill-Ktieb tal-Levitiku 13, 1-2, 45-46

Il-Mulej kellem lil Mose' u lil Aron u qalilhom: "Meta xi ħadd ikollu fil-ġilda xi qxur jew xi  bużżiieqa, jew xi tebgħa bajda, qisha ġerħa tal-ġdiem, jeħduh għand Aron il-qassis, jew għand xi ħadd minn  ulied il-qassisin. Il-marid bil-ġdiem għandu jilbes ħwejjeġ imqattgħa u jħalli rasu mikxufa, u jitgħatta sa geddumu, u  jgħajjat:   "Imniġġes!  Imniġġes!" Kemm idum marid ikun miżmumu b'imniġġes li hu, u jgħix waħdu f'postu barra mill-kamp."  Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Responsorial Psalm        PSalm 32:1-2, 5, 11

Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.

R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.

Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, “I confess my faults to the LORD,”
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you just;
exult, all you upright of heart.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.

Salm Responsorjali            Salm 31 (32)

                R/  Int kenn għalija, iddawwarni u tfarraħni bil-ħelsien tiegħek.

Ħieni l-bniedem li ħtijietu maħfura,

li għandu d-dnub tiegħu mistur!

Ħieni l-bniedem li ebda ħażen ma jgħoddlu l-Mulej,

u ma għandu ebda qerq f'qalbu!                                              R/

Id-dnub tiegħi jien stqarrejtlek,

u l-ħażen tiegħi ma ħbejtulekx.

Jien għedt:  "Quddiem il-Mulej nistqarr ħtiijieti."

U inti ħfirtli l-hażen tad-dnub tiegħi.                                     R/

Ifirħu, twajbin, u thennew fil-Mulej;

Għajtu bil-ferħ, intom ilkoll ta' qalbkom saffja.                 R/

Reading 2                 1 CORinthians 10:31—11:1

Brothers and sisters,  Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or  the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the many, that they may be saved. Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.  This is the Word of The Lord.

It-Tieni Lezzjoni   -    mill-1 Ittra lill-Korintin, 10, 3-11,1

Ħuti, sew jekk tieklu, sew jekk tixorbu, tagħmnlu x'taħmlu, agħmlu kollox  għall-glorja ta' Alla.  Tkunux ta' tfixkil, la għal-Lhud, la għall-Griegi, u lanqas għall-Knisja ta' Alla.   Hekk jien nogħġob lil kulħadd f'kollox, bla ma nfittex l-interess tiegħi, imma tal-ħafna biex isalvaw. Ixbħu lili, bħalma jien nixbaħ lil Kristu.   Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Gospel                     MarK 1:40-45

A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,  touched him, and said to him,  “I do will it. Be made clean.” The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. Then, warning the him sternly, he dismissed him at once.  He said to him, “See that you tell no one anyt hing, but go, show yourself to the priest  and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.” The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.  This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Evanġelju   -    skond San Mark1, 40-45

F'dak iż-żmien, resaq fuq Ġesu' wieħed lebbruż jiltolbu bil-ħerqa,  inxteħet għarkupptejh quddiemu  u qallu:  "Jekk trid, tista' tfejjaqni!"    Imqanqal mill-ħniena, Ġesu' midd idu fuqu,  messu u qallu:  "Irrid, kun imnaddaf!" U minnufih il-lebbra marritlu u ġismu ndaf. U widdbu bis-sħiħ, bagħtu malajr u qallu: "Qis lima tgħid xejn lil ħadd;  iżda mur uri ruħek lill-qassis, u agħmel offerta għall- fejqan tiegħek kif ordna Mose', biex tkunilhom ta' xhieda." Iżda dak, meta telaq, beda jxandar ma kullimkien u jxerred l-aħbar, hekk li Ġesu' f'edba blet ma sata' iżjed jidħol bid-dieher, imma kien jibqa' barra  fil-kampanja u kienu jmorru ħġdejh nies minn kullimkien. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.

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Father Cantalamessa comments on Society's New Leprosies

 A Leper Came to Jesus

In the readings of the day the word leprosy resounds, which, just by hearing it being pronounced, caused anguish and fear for millennia! Two extraneous factors contributed to increase terror in the face of this sickness, to the point of making it the symbol of the greatest misfortune that could befall a human creature and isolate the poor unfortunate victims in the most inhuman ways.   The first was the conviction that this disease was so contagious that it infected anyone who might have been in contact with the sick person; the second, equally groundless, was that leprosy was a punishment for sin.

The one who contributed most to change the attitude and legislation in respect of lepers was Raoul Follereau (1903-1977). In 1954 he instituted the World Day of Leprosy, promoted scientific congresses and finally, in 1975, was successful in having legislation on the segregation of lepers revoked.   In regard to the phenomenon of leprosy, the readings of this Sunday enable us to know first the attitude of the Mosaic law and then of the Gospel of Christ. The First Reading from Leviticus states that the person suspected of suffering from leprosy must be taken to a priest who, verifying it, \"declares him impure.\" To make matters worse, the poor leper, excluded from human fellowship, must himself keep people away from him, warning them of the danger. Society\'s sole concern is to protect itself. 

Let us now see how Jesus conducts himself in the Gospel: A leper came to him beseeching him:"'If you will, you can make me clean.' Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, 'I will;  be clean.' And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean."

Jesus is not afraid of contagion; he allows the leper to come to him and kneel before him. More than that: at a time when it was thought that mere proximity to a leper contaminated, he "stretched out his hand and touched him." We must not think that all this was spontaneous and cost Jesus nothing. As man, he shared in this, as in many other points, the convictions of his time and of the society in which he lived. But his compassion for the leper was stronger in him than the fear of leprosy.  In this circumstance, Jesus pronounces a simple and sublime phrase: "I will; be clean."    "If you will, you can," the leper had said, thus manifesting his faith in the power of Christ Jesus, who shows he can do it by doing it.

This comparison between the Mosaic law and the Gospel in the case of leprosy makes us ask ourselves the question: By which of the two attitudes am I inspired? It is true that leprosy is no longer the disease that causes most fear (though there are still millions of lepers in the world), as it is possible, if caught in time, to be completely cured of it. And in the majority of countries it has been altogether eradicated. But other diseases have taken its place. For some time there has been talk of "new leprosies" and "new lepers." With these terms is understood not so much the incurable illnesses of today, as the diseases (AIDS and drug dependency) against which society protects itself, as it did with leprosy, isolating the sick person and relegating him to the margins of society.

What Raoul Follereau suggested be done vis-à-vis traditional lepers, and which contributed so much to alleviate their isolation and suffering, should be done (and thank God many do) with the new lepers. Often such a gesture, especially if it is done having to overcome oneself, marks the beginning of a real conversion for the one doing it. The most famous case is that of Francis of Assisi, who dates the beginning of his new life from his meeting with a leper. 

[Translation by ZENIT]  © Innovative Media Inc.