Feb 14, 2021 - 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Lev 13:1-2, 44-46; 1 Cor 10:31-11:1; Mk 1:40-45)

Paul is teaching us in the second reading, that although each of us is responsible for obeying God’s law in the particular circumstances of our lives, we also must be aware of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Their relationship with God might hinge upon our behavior, and we need to be aware of the consciences of those around us, who may have scruples that we do not. We do not want to lead anyone into sin by our behavior, but rather lead them to Christ. Being sensitive to the spiritual needs of others and their disposition before God will help us to please them and God at the same time.

In today’s Gospel, the Eternal High Priest reaches out and makes the leper clean. Jesus’s purity cleanses the impurity of the disease and eradicates its power in the man’s life. Leprosy, which was and is a debilitating skin disease, was a physical sign of spiritual impurity. In the same way that bodily leprosy would exclude a person from spiritual communion with the Lord, sin excludes us from God’s presence and breaks our relationship with him. While we are in sin, we cannot truly worship God. Jesus brings a solution for the leprosy of sin. In fact, he is the solution. It is by his blood that our sins can be forgiven, and we can again be made clean before God.

• St. Irenaeus said, “The glory of God is man fully alive.” What does it look like for you to live a life “fully alive”?
• How do you try and live out St. Paul’s words to the Corinthians to do all that you do for the glory of God?
• The Gospel today demonstrates God’s grace in two powerful ways -  asking Jesus with the leper’s confidence to heal us in some way OR acknowledging some “outsider” in our lives who could use our compassion and readiness to reach out.  Share an experience you have had with either of these graces.
• Leprosy is not a common disease anymore. Who would you say are the “lepers” in our society today and why?