Word to the Wise
Thursday, January 13, 2022 - Thursday in the 1st Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Sam 4:1-11 and Mark 1:40-45]"See that you tell no one anything, 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. [Mark]
To heal a leper in Jesus' time would be almost like raising a person from the dead. Lepers were outcasts and could not have contact with anyone. What Jesus does for the leper in today's gospel passage is, therefore, dramatic. But Jesus pays a price for his compassion because the leper he healed could not keep it a secret. (Who really could?). The result is that everyone sick comes running. But healthcare is not the point of Jesus' mission. That point, in the Gospel According to Mark, is only understood when Jesus is crucified and risen from the dead. He is going to do some other dramatic actions like feeding the multitudes and walking on water, but even after these, his closest disciples still had trouble understanding. [Mark 6:52] The point of Jesus' ministry was the preach "the Kingdom of God."
Do we prefer to think of Jesus simply as a "miracle worker" and/or a great moral teacher without understanding who he truly is - the Son of God who has come to suffer and die for us? The "signs and wonders" approach to religious faith puts God to the proof. The people who "kept coming to him from everywhere" wanted to keep him in their area. [Mark 1:35-39]. That would completely frustrate Jesus' mission. The focus should be on The Kingdom of God and repentance. Can we focus on that and not expect "signs and wonders?" AMEN