February 14, 2021 Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time

2021년 2월 14일 연중 제6주일  

오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp 

제1독서

레위기. 13,1-2.44-46
 1 주님께서 모세와 아론에게 이르셨다.

2 “누구든지 살갗에 부스럼이나 습진이나 얼룩이 생겨,
그 살갗에 악성 피부병이 나타나면,
그를 아론 사제나 그의 아들 사제 가운데 한 사람에게 데려가야 한다.
44 그는 악성 피부병에 걸린 사람이므로 부정하다.
그는 머리에 병이 든 사람이므로,
사제는 그를 부정한 이로 선언해야 한다.
45 악성 피부병에 걸린 병자는 옷을 찢어 입고 머리를 푼다.
그리고 콧수염을 가리고 ‘부정한 사람이오.’, ‘부정한 사람이오.’ 하고 외친다.
46 병이 남아 있는 한 그는 부정하다.
그는 부정한 사람이므로, 진영 밖에 자리를 잡고 혼자 살아야 한다.”

 
제2독서

코린토 1서. 10,31─11,1
형제 여러분, 31 여러분은 먹든지 마시든지,
그리고 무슨 일을 하든지 모든 것을 하느님의 영광을 위하여 하십시오.
32 유다인에게도 그리스인에게도 하느님의 교회에도
방해를 놓는 자가 되지 마십시오.
33 무슨 일을 하든 모든 사람을 기쁘게 하려고 애쓰는 나처럼 하십시오.
나는 많은 사람이 구원을 받을 수 있도록,
내가 아니라 그들에게 유익한 것을 찾습니다.
11,1 내가 그리스도를 본받는 것처럼 여러분도 나를 본받는 사람이 되십시오  

복음

마르코. 1,40-45
 그때에 40 어떤 나병 환자가 예수님께 와서 도움을 청하였다.

그가 무릎을 꿇고 이렇게 말하였다.
“스승님께서는 하고자 하시면 저를 깨끗하게 하실 수 있습니다.”
41 예수님께서 가엾은 마음이 드셔서 손을 내밀어 그에게 대시며 말씀하셨다.
“내가 하고자 하니 깨끗하게 되어라.”
42 그러자 바로 나병이 가시고 그가 깨끗하게 되었다.
43 예수님께서는 그를 곧 돌려보내시며 단단히 이르셨다.
44 그에게 이렇게 말씀하셨다. “누구에게든 아무 말도 하지 않도록 조심하여라.
다만 사제에게 가서 네 몸을 보이고,
네가 깨끗해진 것과 관련하여 모세가 명령한 예물을 바쳐,
그들에게 증거가 되게 하여라.”
45 그러나 그는 떠나가서 이 이야기를 널리 알리고 퍼뜨리기 시작하였다.
그리하여 예수님께서는 더 이상 드러나게 고을로 들어가지 못하시고,
바깥 외딴곳에 머무르셨다. 그래도 사람들은 사방에서 그분께 모여들었다.

February 14, 2021

Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Daily Readings — Audio

Daily Reflections — Video

http://www.usccb.org/bible/ 

Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass 

Reading 1
Lv 13:1-2, 44-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,
"If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch
which appears to be the sore of leprosy,
he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest,
or to one of the priests among his descendants.
If the man is leprous and unclean,
the priest shall declare him unclean
by reason of the sore on his head.
"The one who bears the sore of leprosy
shall keep his garments rent and his head bare,
and shall muffle his beard;
he shall cry out, 'Unclean, unclean!'
As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean,
since he is in fact unclean.
He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp."

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 32:1-2, 5, 11
R. (7) I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD,"
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.
Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you just;
exult, all you upright of heart.
R. I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble, and you fill me with the joy of salvation.

Reading II
1 Cor 10:31-11:1

Brothers and sisters,
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,
do everything for the glory of God.
Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or 
the church of God,
just as I try to please everyone in every way,
not seeking my own benefit but that of the many,
that they may be saved.
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

Gospel
Mk 1:40-45 
A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, 
touched him, and said to him, 
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. 
He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest 
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.

http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

 The first reading for today always seemed rather harsh to me - until the Covid19 pandemic hit. For a country that didn’t have hospitals, look how practical this passage is. Leprosy could be a variety of skin diseases. However, many of them were quite deadly. So, what do you do when a person contracts one of these? It was the priests who determined whether or not a person had the disease. They would either declare that you had it or you didn’t. If you had it, consider what the sick person was to do. First, they were to tear their clothes and keep their head bare. This is something that people could see from a distance, if they happened upon the sick person. Second, they were to muffle their beard which has essentially been understood to mean that they are to cover their mouth. The rabbis discussed how close a person should get to someone with leprosy. If there was no wind, they thought that you should not get any closer than four cubits. By the way, four cubits is six feet. Third, if someone happened to get too close, the sick person was to cry out “Unclean, unclean!” Finally, the leprous person is to be quarantined. They can have a set place to live but it must be outside the camp. If the skin sores disappeared, the person would show themselves to the priest who would declare them clean. One thing this passage of scripture has taught me is not to criticize ancient practices unless you spend the time to fully understand them and the reasons for them. Could a place that didn’t have hospitals have a more practical and modest approach to a communicable disease?

The Gospel reading tells the story of a leprous man who broke with the law and actually approached Jesus. That must have taken a lot of courage, for he certainly could have gotten in a lot of trouble for that. Jesus didn’t flinch and gave the man what he requested, full and complete healing. What compassion Jesus had. Lepers could live out their lives without human contact. Who would knowingly touch a leper? Jesus. Following the law, he told the man to go and show himself to the priest who would declare him clean. He also told him to keep the healing a secret. Jesus wasn’t ready for people to get king or Messiah ideas about him. Sadly, the man didn’t listen to Jesus but spread the story about to the point that Jesus’ ministry was hindered.

The psalmist says that blessed is the man “in whose spirit there is no guile.” Since two of today’s readings are about people with deadly diseases, the psalmist made me think of my good friend, Doctor Ed Thornton, from Denton, Texas. Ed was the ER doctor at one of the local hospitals for many years. He retired from this and became one of those traveling doctors who would go wherever there was a catastrophe. He was in New Orleans during Katrina. Name an event over the last fifteen years that caused a health crisis and needed doctors and you would find that Ed was there. But eventually he retired from that, too. Recently the locals contacted him and asked for his help with Covid19 patients. They were swamped and needed his help. He answered the call only to eventually contract the illness and succumb to it a week later. I think of Ed because he was a man without guile. In hearing of his death, I thought, could I possibly find anyone who would have something bad to say about him? I concluded that I could not. He could tell you his political or religious views and you might be one hundred percent opposed to them but you still couldn’t bring yourself to dislike Ed. He just had a way about him that made people feel loved and appreciated. During this pandemic when many people are feeling isolated and alone, think of those heroes who answered the call for you and your family. Think of those Doctor Eds in your life.

May the spirit of Jesus who loved the sick, and the spirit of Doctor Ed who could so beautifully minister to the sick, fill us and grant us the Lord’s peace. Amen.

 http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp

 

MY LEPROSY

“A leper approached Him with a request, kneeling down as he addressed Him: ‘If You will to do so, You can cure me.’ ” —Mark 1:40

Leprosy in the New Testament is sometimes symbolic of such spiritual conditions as unforgiveness, anger, bitterness, resentment, hatred, self-hatred, and other sins.
Leprosy can appear as a scab (Lv 13:2). A scab is a wound that has closed and is beginning to heal. Scabs often itch. We are tempted to pick at them, re-open the wound, and lose the healing already received. Are you “picky”? Are you itching to say something to a certain someone? Don’t pick at your wound. Turn to Jesus to continue to heal your leprous scab.
Leprosy sometimes appears as a pustule (Lv 13:2). A pustule is a type of growth caused by an infection. A pustule contains an infected liquid called pus, which must be drained in a sterile way so as not to cause more infection. A pustule has increasing pressure on it to come to a head and expel its pus. Are you infected with sin? Will you infect others? Do you feel mounting pressure to spew out your pus, venom, or poison? Jesus felt this way on the cross, but He poured out love rather than hate. Turn to Jesus to heal your leprous pustule.
Leprosy can appear as a blotch (Lv 13:2). We could think of it as an allergic reaction. Are there certain people, statements, or circumstances which cause you to “break out” in fear, anxiety, defensiveness, confusion, or anger? Let Jesus touch your leprous blotches and their causes (see Mk 1:41).
Only Jesus heals lepers. We are leprous. We need Jesus.

Prayer:  Father, may I let Jesus touch me where I hurt and fear the most.

Promise:  “Whether you eat or drink — whatever you do — you should do all for the glory of God.” —1 Cor 10:31

Praise:  “We are the most pitiable of men” (1 Cor 15:19). Yet Your Resurrection gives us hope. Praise You, Jesus!

 http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/

  Can anything on earth truly satisfy the hunger we experience for God? The enormous crowd that pressed upon Jesus for three days were hungry for something more than physical food. They hung upon Jesus' words because they were hungry for God. When the disciples were confronted by Jesus with the task of feeding four thousand people many miles away from any source of food, they exclaimed: Where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them? The Israelites were confronted with the same dilemma when they fled Egypt and found themselves in a barren wilderness.

Like the miraculous provision of manna in the wilderness, Jesus, himself provides bread in abundance for the hungry crowd who came out into the desert to seek him. The Gospel records that all were satisfied and they took up what was leftover. When God gives he gives abundantly - more than we deserve and more than we need so that we may have something to share with others as well. The Lord Jesus nourishes and sustains us with his life-giving word and with his heavenly bread.

Jesus nourishes us with the true bread of heaven
The sign of the multiplication of the loaves, when the Lord says the blessing, breaks and distributes through his disciples, prefigures the superabundance of the unique bread of his Eucharist or Lord's Supper. When we receive from the Lord's table we unite ourselves to Jesus Christ, who makes us sharers in his body and blood. Ignatius of Antioch (35-107 A.D.) calls it the "one bread that provides the medicine of immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that makes us live for ever in Jesus Christ" (Ad Eph. 20,2). This supernatural food is healing for both body and soul and strength for our journey heavenward.

When you approach the Table of the Lord, what do you expect to receive? Healing, pardon, comfort, and refreshment for your soul? The Lord has much more for us, more than we can ask or imagine. The principal fruit of receiving from the Lord's Table is an intimate union with Christ himself. As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens us in charity and enables us to break with disordered attachments to creatures and to be more firmly rooted in the love of Christ. Do you hunger for Jesus, the true "bread of life"?

Lord Jesus, you alone can satisfy the hunger in our lives. Fill me with grateful joy and eager longing for the true heavenly bread which gives health, strength, and wholeness to body and soul alike.

Psalm 106:4,6-7, 19-22

4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you deliver them;
6 Both we and our fathers have sinned; we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.
7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wonderful works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled against the Most High at the Red Sea.
19 They made a calf in Horeb and worshiped a molten image.
20 They exchanged the glory of God for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt,
22 wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red Sea.

Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: Breaking the bread of God's Word, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"In expounding to you the Holy Scriptures, I as it were break bread for you. If you hunger to receive it, your heart will sing out with the fullness of praise (Psalm 138:1). If you are thus made rich in your banquet, be not meager in good works and deeds. What I am distributing to you is not my own. What you eat, I eat; what you live upon, I live upon. We have in heaven a common store-house - from it comes the Word of God." (excerpt from SERMONS ON NEW TESTAMENT LESSONS 45.1)

 

 

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