Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday each and every one of us are reminded first of all that we have to seek the Lord and put Him at the centre and as the focus of our lives, as it is in Him alone that we can find liberation and freedom from all of our troubles, sufferings and pains, which is represented by the problem of leprosy highlighted in our Scripture readings today. That leprosy is a representation of all of the things which have kept us from the fullness of grace in God, and it is in the Lord alone that we can find total and complete freedom from all these taints and corruptions, and find true satisfaction and joy.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Leviticus in which the matter of leprosy and how it should he handled and treated are presented to us. However, first of all, we must understand that the kind of disease now known as leprosy, is probably different from what was indicated and known in the time of the Exodus and in the historic Israel. The skin diseases that are infectious and showing external signs easily visible to others at that time were generally all called leprosy, and this kind of infection was greatly feared at the time especially because during the time of the Exodus and the journey from the land of Egypt to the Promised Land of Canaan, many of the people were living together in close and cramped quarters, in which any disease outbreak would have been deadly.

That was why, as part of the laws and customs established then by the Law of God and Moses, it was settled that those who suffered from leprosy ought to distance themselves from others, and they were to be sent out from the community for the good of the whole community. At the same time, those who suffered from the leprosy could eventually return once they have recovered and been cured from the leprosy, which is yet another sign that this kind of leprosy is not exactly the same as the leprosy we commonly know today, which is mostly incurable. Nonetheless, it has always been the intention of the Lord to help manage, safeguard and protect His people through the Law that He has given to them, so that they could remain safe and healthy throughout their long journey.

However, this Law in time became a source of prejudice and discrimination against those who suffered from leprosy and other diseases, as those who suffered from them became ostracised and were treated badly against, as they were deemed to be unclean and even treated as if they had committed bad things and deeds in life, in which the leprosy became some sorts of Divine retribution or punishment for their wickedness and sins. This was where the Lord came in and showed that this attitude was not helpful and charitable, and is something that they should not be doing, as ultimately, everyone who suffered from those diseases and afflictions, are also equally beloved by God, and are our own brothers and sisters in the same Lord and Father.

In our second reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, we heard the Apostle exhorting the faithful people of God in the city of Corinth reminding that they all should be following the examples of the Lord, in doing what He had taught and commanded them to do, not to seek their own interests or to offend anyone. This also implied that they should also not differentiate anyone by their background or origins, as what St. Paul had often championed, in highlighting the equality between the Jewish people and the non-Jewish people or the Gentiles, how everyone ought to be treated equally, and not be prejudiced or biased against each other.

To understand this better, once again we have to understand the context of what happened at that time, and the dynamics of the community of the faithful then. At that time, the Jewish people, who were directly descended from the people of Israel and Judah, had considered themselves to be better and more privileged than others by virtue of them and their ancestors being the chosen people, the ones descended from Abraham and Israel, God’s first chosen people. However, some among them like the Pharisees, took this to the extreme, by considering that any association or contact with the Gentiles or pagans would have made them to be unclean and unworthy, stained and corrupted in some form.

This is why the Lord reached out to the leper in our Gospel passage today, as He showed His mercy and compassion on him as the leper begged the Lord to heal him and to make him healthy once again. No one among the Jewish people, especially the Pharisees would have even come close to the leper, less still to help and heal him. The Gospel passage was also very clear in pointing out that the Lord stretched out His hand and touched the leper, which caused the leprosy to be healed immediately. The Lord wanted the leper, His disciples and all of us to know that, nothing came separate or come in between us and the love of God, no matter what. He came to heal us and to gather us all back to His loving Presence, and to liberate us from all of our trials and troubles.

Now, in today’s Scripture readings, there is one more topic and important point highlighted in them, that is the matter of obedience. In the same Gospel passage today, we heard how the Lord told the healed leper that he ought to show himself to the priest in the manner prescribed by the Law, and not to tell anyone else how he had been healed. Yet, that same leper disobeyed Him and did the exact opposite. It was likely that the Lord knew that the leper was going to disobey Him and therefore He gave him a reminder that he should not do so. The healed leper chose to disobey the Lord anyway, and that brought difficulties to the Lord and His works. Why is that so? That is because if everyone found out that the Lord had been touching a leper, although He did heal the latter from his leprosy, but some would have considered the Lord to be unclean and hence ought to be ostracised like the leper himself.

Another possibility was that when everyone found out about the miraculous healing, all the people would have wanted to seek the Lord and be healed by Him as well, and this would have made it really difficult for Him to go into any towns because of the immense crowds that would have sought Him. But regardless of the reasons why the Lord had to stay in the wilderness, the reality is that, despite knowing that the leper was going to disobey Him, the risks involved in doing His works and all, the Lord still chose to heal the leper anyway, showing the great love and compassion which He has always had for every one of us, regardless of who we are and what kind of conditions we have, and He patiently reached out to us sinners, to gather us all and to bring us all back to Him.

And this is also a reminder for us that God alone has the power to heal and save us from our own ‘leprosy’ that is our sins. Yes, sin is the leprosy of our souls, which afflicts and corrupts our body, mind, heart and soul, essentially our whole being. And unlike other kinds of diseases and afflictions, which can be cured and settled by doctors and medicines, by the technology and advancements in this world, even that of the usual leprosy, but the leprosy of our sins cannot be cured and healed save that of by God’s grace and healing. Yes, the Lord alone has the power and authority to free us all from our many sins and evils, from our wickedness and corruptions. He can forgive and heal us from the power of darkness, and bring us all into the Light of salvation and grace.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore spend some time to reflect on these readings from the Scriptures and see in what way that we can be better disciples and followers of Our Lord and God. Let us all restrain ourselves from the path of sin and evil, and do our part so that we may always continue to grow in faith in Him, and come to be good role models and examples in faith at all times. Let us all be humble and seek the Lord’s forgiveness and healing, liberating us from the shackles and slavery to sin. May the Lord in His great love and compassion for all of us continue to love us and bless us in each and every moments of our lives, and may He guide us in our journey of faith and life, and be with us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday’s Scripture readings are clear reminders for each and every one of us of the fickleness of our human nature and existence, and of everything which we have and which we are currently experiencing in this world. All that we have enjoyed and all the wonderful and marvellous things we possess, all these are ultimately illusory in nature, and they may even distract us from our true path and progress in life, from our true focus and commitment, which is none other than the Lord, our God Himself. We must remember that we have been entrusted by the Lord with many things, with blessings and opportunities that we may glorify Him by our lives, and we should therefore make good use of them for the greater glory of God at all times.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Job, of the lamentations and sorrows which the man of God, Job uttered as he was reflecting upon the sufferings and hardships that he had been enduring and experiencing at that time. Job was a great and rich man, greatly blessed by God in all things on account of his great faith and righteousness, his commitment and dedication to Him. However, Job encountered great moment of trial and tribulation, hardship and difficulty when he was attacked by the devil, who struck him, his possessions and loved ones to test him and his faith in God. But Job remained firm in his faith and did not allow the devil and his machinations to dissuade him and to take him away from the faith that he had in the Lord.

Despite suffering greatly and being ridiculed, rejected and ostracised by those whom he knew, even those who were near to him, Job remained faithful to the Lord, and trusted in Him regardless of what he had experienced. While his heart was filled with sorrow and pain, despair and regret of what happened to him, and blaming himself on occasions that everything happened because of his fault, but he still held on firmly to his faith in the Lord no matter what. And this is what all of us should be inspired to follow in our own lives, as we should also do whatever we can such that we may truly live our lives most worthily as best as we are able to, and despite the challenges and trials that we may have to encounter and face along our journey, we can always continue to persevere in righteousness and virtue, to be always ever worthy of God.

In our second reading today, St. Paul in his Epistle to the Corinthians spoke about how he cannot boast for whatever he had done in preaching the Gospel, in doing God’s works and in carrying out everything that had been entrusted to him by the Lord, all the missions and miracles he had performed. All these are reminders that in everything that we do as Christians, and as God’s people in this world should not be seeking personal glory and ambition, worldly attachments and matters, and we should not revel in worldly praise and jubilation, or to be proud and haughty because we have done great deeds in our lives. Instead, like St. Paul himself, we should always remain rooted in the Lord and continue to live our lives with Him as the centre and focus, and not the many worldly matters and attachments we have.

That was also how Job managed to remain strong in faith despite having suffered many personal losses, of property, wealth and loved ones. If Job had placed his trust and immersed himself in those things, then losing all of them would have made him to despair and lose all hope. But he remained faithful to God and did not blame the Lord for his losses. He was also able to let go of his losses and accepted what he had suffered as his fate. St. Paul similarly endured many things throughout the period of his work and ministry, which he could do precisely because he trusted in the Lord, and he did not let himself to be misled and swayed by the temptations of worldly glory and ambitions. He trusted the Lord in everything that he has been entrusted to do, and followed the Lord wherever He led him to.

In our Gospel passage this Sunday, we then heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus healed and ministered to the mother-in-law of one of His disciples, that is St. Peter, whose mother-in-law was very sick. The Lord miraculously healed her, and made her well again, and we heard then how the whole neighbourhood found out about what happened, and many people came to the Lord bearing their sick ones, so that the Lord might hopefully heal all of them as well. He cared for those who had been brought to Him and healed them all. Then, curiously, we heard how the Lord went off in the very early morning to pray, disappearing from the place, to the consternation from His disciples and the people. That was when He told the disciples that there were still many people that He had to minister to, and they all ought to move on to other places as well.

The Lord Jesus could have stayed on in that place, well-liked and adored by all the people who have witnessed and believed in His miracles. He could very well have gained a large following and popularity without much effort, and lead a rather comfortable and convenient work, instead of having to go from places to places, without proper accommodations and encountering oppositions and challenges throughout His efforts and journeys. Yet, the Lord obeyed the will of His Heavenly Father, Who had sent Him, the Son, into this world to proclaim the Good News and the salvation of God to more and more people. Hence, this is why the Lord carried out His mission faithfully and did everything not for worldly comfort or glory, but to fulfil the will of God, and to glorify Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, having heard of all these readings and reminders from the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that as God’s faithful disciples and followers, we too should be filled with faith and trust in the Lord, and we should always continue to put God as the centre and the focus of our whole lives. We should not allow worldly temptations, attachments, glory, ambitions and our pride and greed, our desires and all other obstacles to prevent us from reaching ever closer to God, to His grace and salvation. Like Job, let us all detach ourselves from worldly matters and attachments, and remind ourselves that all the wealth and glory of the world are not lasting or permanent. Instead of seeking for worldly glory and greatness, we should seek the true joy and satisfaction which we can find in the Lord alone.

Let us all hence be good role models and inspirations, and be the worthy bearers of the light of God, His grace and love for us all. May all of us be blessed in our every good works, efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.