A homily by Fr. Gene
Tucker, given at Trinity Church ,
Mt. Vernon, Illinois, on Sunday, February
12, 2012.
“THE ‘OUTSIDER’ IS RECEIVED INSIDE”(Homily texts: II Kings 5: 1 – 14 & Mark 1: 40 - 45)
Who’s
“in” and who’s “out”?
Such a question is often the concern of high school students, as they vie for acceptance. In the process, groups get formed, and sometimes, they are groups made of people who think that they are “insiders”. They may think of themselves as being superior in some way to “outsiders”.
We
probably shouldn’t be too hard on high school students. After all, I suspect that, if we are honest
with ourselves and each other, we should probably admit that we might tend to
engage in this sort of activity throughout much of our lives.
Belonging
to a group is an important human need.
We are, after all, created to be in communion with one another, and with
God. That is our basic “design”, if you
will, instilled by God into every human heart and mind at our creation.
As
part of expressing and fulfilling this need, we identify a group that we would
like to join, and then we do all that we can to remain a part of the group. We might even adopt attitudes of superiority
as we regard other groups or other individuals who aren’t in our group. (One way this gets expressed in the Church is
by claiming that “our” Church is better than others….what an arrogant attitude!)
Today’s
gospel text is all about who’s “in” and who’s “out”.
Unfortunately,
much of the context which existed in those ancient times for determining who
falls into which category is lost to our 21st century ears and
minds. In order to recapture the sense of
what society was like when Jesus’ earthly ministry took place, we need to back
up a bit and examine the attitudes and behaviors of the Jews of His day.
The
practices and attitudes which were found in Judaism 2,000 years ago had
everything to do with being “clean” or “unclean”.
Cleanliness
didn’t have to do so much with one’s physical cleanliness (I say this to a
congregation whose expectations of cleanliness have much to do with the
availability of clean water and plenty of soap!
After all, our society expects that people will bathe regularly),
although the Law of Moses did prescribe bathing rituals at various times, such
as before attending worship in the Tabernacle or the Temple.
No,
cleanliness had much to do with a person’s physical infirmities, or the lack
thereof.
Cleanliness
in this sense made it possible for a person to attend public worship, or -
conversely - a lack of cleanliness excluded a person from worship.
Put
another way, if a person was clean, that person was “in”. If the person was unclean, they were “out”.
This
key aspect of life in that ancient time brings us directly to the matter of the
healing of the leper in today’s gospel passage, which is before us.
Leprosy
in the ancient world was one of the most feared physical conditions that
afflicted humankind. The Law of Moses’
directions for dealing with a person who was afflicted with it were clear. And – to be fair – we need to remind
ourselves that it wasn’t just the actual disease which is known as leprosy
today (generally known as Hansen’s Disease), but a wide range of skin disorders
and conditions that fell under the Law’s requirements.
We
don’t know exactly what condition the man had who came up to Jesus, seeking
Jesus’ healing ministry.
But
we do know how the Law regarded these various skin conditions. Among its provisions were these:
·
The Law’s
provisions are laid out in the Book of Numbers, chapters 13 and 14.
·
Leprosy was regarded as a punishment for sin
(see Numbers 12: 10 – 15).[1]
·
The person so affected was to wear torn clothing,
have disheveled hair, to live outside the camp or town, and to cry out,
“Unclean, unclean” if anyone approached (see Numbers 13: 45 – 46).
·
Physical contact with a person who was affected
also rendered the other person as being unclean, as well.
·
A cure from leprosy was regarded as being as
marvelous as being raised from the dead (see Numbers 12: 10 – 12, and II Kings
5:7[2]),
for having leprosy was seen as a “living death”.
And so, as
we look closely at the diseased man’s request of Jesus, we see that he says to
Jesus, “If you will, you can make me clean”
(italics mine, of course).
Notice
that he doesn’t ask Jesus to heal him. He asks to be made clean.
I
don’t think I’m going too far out on a limb to suggest that the man’s request
probably had something to do with being “in” again.
After
all, the man couldn’t enter the Temple in Jerusalem to worship. He couldn’t live in town. He couldn’t associate with family members or
former friends. He couldn’t shop in the
marketplace. He was “out”, entirely
“out”, of the community, outside of the ability to enter the holy place where
God’s presence dwelt, and “out” everywhere else, too.
Such
a world seems strange to us, doesn’t it?
But,
if we reflect a little, I think we can see that we harbor some of the same
attitudes as existed in the Judaism of Jesus’ day….Don’t we shy away from a
poorly dressed person, or someone who could use a good shower, for example?
I
will admit, I do that on occasion.
We
might do the same thing with a person who has an obvious medical condition that
is debilitating.
But
what does Jesus do? Instead of complying
with the Law’s demands, Jesus crosses the boundaries, touching the man, and
saying, “I will, be clean.”
Wait
a minute….didn’t Jesus become “unclean” by touching the diseased man.
By
the Law’s standards, yes, He did.
But
He did it anyway.
Mark
tells us that Jesus was “moved with compassion” for the man.
Compassion. Love.
Concern for others. All of these
are hallmarks of Jesus’ ministry, His teachings, and His healings.
You
see, if we consider the attitudes that the Mosaic law encouraged, we can see
that its major concern was for the welfare of the group. The individual was expected to honor the
welfare of the group by separating him/herself from the group if they became
unclean. The other major concern of the
Law was borne out of respect for God’s holiness. That is to say, the cleanliness codes which
we find in the Law existed to remind God’s people that He is holy, so holy, in
fact, that no unclean thing or person could approach His presence.
So,
in the Law, we have two major concerns:
1. God’s holiness, which demands cleanliness,
2. God’s people’s welfare, which demands that
unclean persons separate themselves from the group.
But
Jesus restores the concern that’s missing:
A concern for the individual’s welfare and wellbeing.
And
He does so by bridging the gap, being willing to go “against the grain” of the
normally-accepted Jewish behavior of His day, reaching out to touch the leprous
man. Instead of avoiding the man, He is
willing to risk physical contact with the man in order to restore the man to
the community, and to God.
So
what does this incident teach us?
Perhaps
these observations will serve to prompt our own reflection on the possible
implications:
1. Jesus has a very holistic concern for God,
for the welfare of God’s people, and for the welfare of the individual. All three matter to Jesus.
2. Jesus conquers and bridges the gap between
being “clean” and “unclean”. In the
process, Jesus conquers the “uncleanliness” and renders it “clean.” Just as
Jesus accomplishes this feat with the diseased man in today’s text, so He will
do with the matter of sin as He sacrifices Himself to make atonement for our
sin. In both instances, the gap which separates
us from God is closed.
3. Jesus’ entire purpose is to bring those who
are “outside” into fellowship with God and with God’s people.
4. In bringing us “inside”, Jesus never leaves
us where He finds us. Movement toward
cleanliness and wholeness takes place, as these conditions are removed by the
power of Jesus Christ to heal, and by the indwelling presence of the Holy
Spirit, who convicts us of sin and empowers us to make amendment of life, that
we might become “clean”. Jesus doesn’t
call what is “unclean” “clean”….He removes the dirt (sin)!
As
we enter this period just prior to the beginning of the holy season of Lent,
perhaps a reflection on our own spiritual condition is in order. May the Holy Spirit enable us to have the
strength to examine our own lives, hearts and minds. May the Holy Spirit enable us to see clearly
those places which are “unclean”, and which are therefore unworthy to enter the
presence of the holy God.
AMEN.
