I do will it. Be made clean
1 John 5:5-13
Luke 5:12-16
Leprosy was a much feared disease in the time of Jesus. It had no cure, was highly infectious so that the only way to deal with it was isolation. It was a slow killer, condemning the victim to a lonely, miserable life away from family and friends, and in company with other lepers at various stages of dying. Today we might compare it with Ebola or HIV/AIDS or Covid-19. If anyone came in direct contact with a leper, this person was equally avoided for fear of spreading the diseases further. In today’s gospel text we perceive not only Jesus’ power, but also his compassion. He answers the leper, “of course I want to” and stretches out his hand and touches him. He did not have to do that. He had cured others at a distance. He who could command Lazarus to come out of a tomb, could have commanded the leprosy to leave, without touching the man who was covered with it. He showed him that underneath the repugnant wounds he saw an ailing lovable person.
The first lesson we learn from this story is from the leper himself. He had faith in the power of Jesus. He knew that it was enough for Jesus to want to heal him in order to do so. John has told us in the first reading that only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God can overcome the world. We too have our leprosy: faults and weaknesses we are aware of which we have failed to overcome over the years. If we approach Jesus with the faith of the leper, he will stretch out his hand and heal us.
Secondly, Jesus also had something to ask the leper. He told him not to say what he had done, for it would create unnecessary inconveniences to him, giving his adversaries more ground to accuse him. No one was allowed to touch a leper. Instead he was to show himself to the priest according to the law “as proof for them”. Do we obey what Jesus tells us?
Thirdly, Jesus wants to continue to extend his compassion to others through us. They come to us with all sorts of needs, saying: “if you want to you can help me”. Do we have the compassion of Jesus, when it is in our power to help, to say: “of course I want to, receive what you need”?
