The Sixth Sunday in
Ordinary Time
February 11, 2024
Fr. José Maria de
Sousa Alvim Calado Cortes, F.S.C.B.
Index
Sunday Reading
Meditations
In today's gospel, Jesus heals a leper. Leprosy used to be considered both a physical and spiritual disease. Isolated from the community, lepers were
seemingly abandoned by God and men. Today's first reading says: "He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp" (Lv 13-46).
According to
rabbinical teaching, only God could cure leprosy. For Jesus to heal a
leper was a feat comparable to raising someone from the dead, a
sign that the Messiah had come. As today's alleluia refrain says, "A great
prophet has arisen in our midst. God has visited his people."
"A leper came to
Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, "If you wish, you can make me
clean" In the leper's petition, we hear all mankind
pleading to Jesus for healing.
"Moved with pity,
he stretched out his hand, touched him". In this gesture of mercy toward
the leper, we see God's infinite love toward us. As Saint
John says, "God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son, so
that all who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life"
By healing the
leper, Christ shows us that he forgives our sins and gives us new lie. As
the psalm says, "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." (Ps 32.5).
Encountering
Christ is life-changing. We are renewed and transformed. We perceive
people and things in a new way. We are fashioned by God's
grace. Jesus heals us from sin and fills our hearts with pure gladness.
As today's psalm says, "Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you just; exult, all
you
upright of heart" (Ps 32:11). The psalm refrain says: "I turn to you,
Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation."
Encountering
Christ conquers loneliness and isolation. During the current pandemic, we
are experiencing how hard it is to be separated from the
sacraments, family and friends. Jesus tells the leper to show himself to
the priest and do what Moses prescribed, thereby reinstating him into the
community. In Christ, we are united with God and others.
Encountering Christ is an experience of communion.
The new light
from above impels us to glorify God. In today's second reading, Saint Paul
says: "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do
everything for the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31).
Encountering
Christ opens our hearts to the needs of others. We are no longer the
center of everything. Instead of thinking only about our personal
interests, others' interests come first. As Saint Paul says, "I try to
please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the many"
(1 Cor
10:33). We prioritize not our own benefit but that of others.
May the grace of
our personal encounter with Christ be renewed. May the Lord purify our
sins and give us his life in abundance. May we experience
the passage from isolation to communion with God and all things. May the
Lord help us to do everything for his glory. Amen.