REFLECTIONS ON THE HEALING OF A LEPER (Mk 1: 40 45) I
Over the next few days, I am going to allow myself a topic that I hope you will understand. Instead of commenting on the Word of God that the Church provides us in the Holy Mass for each day, I will speak before the Holy Mass, commenting on a passage from the Gospel of St. Mark that in the circumstances in which we find ourselves right now, has helped me greatly in my personal prayer. It came to me one day as I was meditating, when I was searching for the meaning of the avalanche that has just come down upon us. St. John of the Cross has these words: “Seek in reading and you will find in meditation; knock in prayer and it will be opened to you in contemplation.” I found in this contemplation a lot of light and, with your permission, I would like to share it with you over these next few days.
The passage that we will meditate on together is that of the healing of the leper that we find in the first chapter of the Gospel of St. Mark (1: 40-45). It seems to me that it is very appropriate in the current circumstances because in the center of that episode with the Lord, we find a sick man, a man with a contagious disease. Also, if you think that quarantine is a 21st century invention, you are mistaken: in this passage we will see an example of it from 2000 years ago. But above all, in this passage we will contemplate the difference that exists between the way that God faces the mystery of human suffering and the way in which we usually treat pain and trial. In the current circumstances, it seems to me that we must, more than ever, learn from the One who is “meek and humble of heart”. (Mt 11:29)
Today, I just want to introduce the topic and offer it for your consideration. We will develop it slowly, little by little, with a contemplative, silent, prayerful gaze.
At the beginning of these reflections, I want to make 2 quick observations.
First of all, I submit, from the beginning, everything I will say here to the judgment of the Church, whose children we are and whose faith we glory in professing. If at any time something out of tune with the Catholic faith comes out of my mouth, I publicly retract it. My interpretation of this Gospel event is also not intended to “go with the flow” of what we are hearing from most people regarding the coronavirus. If, on the one hand, I want my words to always be in loving and filial obedience to the Magisterium of the Church; on the other hand, I claim my right to freely give my opinion within the scope of what the Church herself allows, regardless of whether some people or many people or most of the people may like or not like that opinion. According to the old maxim: "In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas." “In necessary things, unity; in the doubtful, freedom, and in everything, charity.”
The second observation is that that the message must be understood as a whole, for which it will be necessary to wait for the end of the exposition of this Gospel passage when this series of reflections concludes. Let no one draw hasty conclusions from a single homily without allowing me come to the end of my explanation. Since I want to go slowly, step by step, and we only have a few minutes each day, each homily must be seen as a part of the greater whole, and only until the exposition is concluded will it be better understood.
I beg, therefore, that justice be done to my words and that they be judged when pieced all together, like mosaic tiles, and they form the complete and finished image of what I will try, with God’s favor, to say.
I entrust to Mary Most Holy the fruit that my clumsy words can produce in the hearts of the faithful. Let everything be for the greater glory of God and the salvation of souls.