January 16, 2014

Mark 1: 40-45

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved http://www.usccb.org/bible/approved-translations

Jesus’ Call -- My Response

Mark’s gospel readings this week offer us a capsulized portrait of Jesus’ early ministry in Galilee. After the call of the first apostles to be “fishers of people” (Monday), Jesus confronts a man with an unclean spirit who shouts “I know who you are!” (Tuesday). Yesterday we pondered the cure of Peter’s mother-in-law, Jesus’ preaching, and his expelling still another demon. Today Jesus meets a leper who says: “If you will to do so, you can cure me.”

These brief snapshots offer a point of entry into my own personal journey with Jesus:

—when and how did I experience some stirring of faith in Jesus?

—what sort of demon have I asked Jesus to remove from my heart?

—how have I invited Jesus to cure my blindness, hard-heartedness, or similar illness?

—these early weeks of 2014, how do I experience Jesus’ invitation to more lively faith, to stronger hope, to generous love?

As I look into Jesus’ eyes today, what do I say? And how does Jesus respond amidst the hectic pace of my daily routine?

— The Jesuit Prayer Team

Prayer

God grant me serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference. Amen!

— The Jesuit Prayer Team

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