In today’s Gospel, Jesus heals a leper. In Biblical times, leprosy was incurable and highly contagious. It was considered a punishment for sin. People believed that what was on the inside was manifested on the outside. The leper was therefore not shown mercy, but cast out from society. When Jesus approaches the leper and touches him, this is the first human contact the leper has had in years. The leper has lived apart from family and friends and has not received a human touch let alone a hug for a very long time. Jesus reaches out with compassion, mercy, and love and touches him, healing first his broken spirit and then healing his body.
In our society today, leprosy is more widespread than ever and far more damaging because it is on the inside where we don’t readily see it and we are insensitive to the damage it causes because we have lived this way for so long. Jesus comes to us this Lent to heal us of our leprosy.
Our leprosy is a disease of the heart. How many times have we been rejected from family and friends because we don’t conform in some way to who they think we should be or how they believe we should think? How many times do we feel the need to “fit in” because we are afraid that others won’t like our real selves? How many times do we have judgmental thoughts or say unkind things about others because they are different from us? Each of us has been both the leper and the one who has treated another as a leper in some way. This is precisely what Jesus wants to heal in us and He will heal us if we approach Him with faith.
Jesus knows everything about us; we cannot hide our flaws, idiosyncrasies, or sins from Him. Yet when we were in sin He died for us. Even in our most unlovable moments, He still loves us. More than anything else, this fact should give us the courage to look deep inside ourselves because He will heal everything we don’t like seeing if we ask Him. He awaits our approach to give us His mercy, the same mercy He had for the lepers of biblical times. His mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation completely restores us and cleans even our darkest corners.
He wishes to heal our woundedness from being treated as a leper as well. Just as He touched the leper, He touches us in the holy Eucharist. He places Himself in our hands. This isn’t a figure of speech. God Himself descends from Heaven and transubstantiates – changes – the bread and wine into Himself. We have the incredible gift of being able to touch Him and be touched by Him every day of our lives. How many wounds He can heal if we trust Him! This Lent He invites us to be reconciled with Him. He waits for us with mercy, ready to forgive. He waits for us with love and compassion, ready to heal. We don’t have to be lepers anymore. The fulness of Easter joy awaits us if we simply ask Him to touch us.
