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SCRIPTURE READING: Mark 1:40-45
“A leper
came to him and pleaded on his knees: ‘If you want to’ he said
‘you can cure me’. Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out
his hand and touched him. ‘Of course I want to!’ he said. ‘Be
cured!’ And the leprosy left him at once and he was cured. Jesus
immediately sent him away and sternly ordered him, ‘Mind you say
nothing to anyone, but go and show yourself to the priest, and
make the offering for your healing prescribed by Moses as
evidence of your recovery’. The man went away, but then started
talking about it freely and telling the story everywhere, so
that Jesus could no longer go openly into any town, but had to
stay outside in places where nobody lived. Even so, people from
all around would come to him.”
Meditation: Try to answer as many questions as possible
1.
How did the leper come to Jesus? What was his posture?
What does that tell you about the leper?
2.
What did the leper say to Jesus? Why did he use “if” and
“can”?
3.
How did Jesus feel for this leper? Why did he feel
that? What does that tell you about the person of Jesus?
4.
What was the leper supposed to do after being healed by
Jesus? What did he do instead? Why?
5.
Why did Jesus have to stay outside in places where nobody
lived? Who usually stays outside where nobody lived (refer to 1st
reading)? What is the significance of this?
By Heart: Reflect on this in light of your daily life situation
Many of us suffer from some sort of a spiritual leprosy caused
by sin in our lives where we become unclean. The first step
towards any recovery from this is to admit that we are unclean
in the sight of God and only God can cure and restore us.
“…Of course I want to”: Jesus does not run away from the
“impure person”. He is not afraid to touch the leper because he
knows that he cannot be contaminated by his impurity; on the
contrary, he will be the one to give new strength to the leper.
Light is stronger than darkness, and whenever we open a window,
it will not be darkness that will come in but the light.
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What
are some of the possible symptoms of spiritual leprosy?
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Where
can we go and plead on our knees for healing from this spiritual
leprosy?
Intercessions:
1.
For the soul of Sebastian Michael who passed away this
week, may God in his love and mercy give him eternal rest and
console his family and friends.
2.
For John and his family, that the Lord will guide and
strengthen him as he seek truth and justice
3.
For all of us, that we might be opened to the healing
touch of the Divine Healer in our lives by surrendering to him
every aspects of our broken lives
Covenant Prayer: |
