A Wide Circle

Gospel: Matthew 10: 37-42

Some might read this Gospel portion and conclude that our circle of concern for others is limited to prophets, the righteous, and those who are disciples of the Lord Jesus.  In this interpretation our circle of concern is limited to those close to us - family and friends, fellow church goers, those of our own nation.  This interpretation justifies the mistreatment of foreigners, the marginalized, and those regarded as unclean in our society.  This interpretation would be wrong.

The Gospel of Matthew begins with the Beatitudes and an application of them in the Sermon on the Mount.  When the Sermon on the Mount ends, Jesus descends the mountain and heals a leper, the most marginalized member of society.  Next, Jesus heals the slave of a Roman centurion, a person with no status at all in society in the employ of the hated foreigners who occupy Israel.  The actions of Jesus suggest that we too must serve those whom Jesus himself served.

When Jesus related the Parable of the Good Samaritan, he asks us: which one was neighbor to the one in need? - keeping in mind that such is the way to eternal life.  The one who was neighbor was the foreigner, the enemy of the man attacked by robbers.  Our commitment to show mercy and care to others is for all people, not just a few.  For all are made in God's image and likeness, all are another Christ, all are temples of the Holy Spirit, all are our brothers in sisters in one human family.

Breaking Boundaries

Gospel: Matthew 8: 5-17

These first actions after the Sermon on the Mount are significant.  In yesterday's Gospel portion Jesus heals an utter outcast and untouchable - a leper.  Today Jesus has compassion on the slave of the hated Roman occupiers, a person with no status in society in the employ of one even more reviled and unclean than a leper in foreign oppressors.  Yet, Jesus demonstrates that the love and mercy of God are for all people without distinction.  

But then Jesus does something remarkable.  He heals Peter's mother-in-law, and she becomes the first to serve the needs of others in the ministry of Jesus.  For upon being healed, she gets up to serve others.  The word used in the text is diakonia.  Peter's mother-in-law in effect becomes the first deacon of the community of Jesus, demonstrating model discipleship: the healed - the ones who have received mercy - are then to heal and show mercy to others.  

Meanwhile the modern church continues to create categories and criteria of worthiness in terms of who should be cared for, and who can serve in various ministerial roles.  The limitations of our care for others stand in stark contrast to the unlimited mercy Jesus extended to others.  The exclusivity of our ministry cliques clash with the boundlessness of Jesus in allowing everyone to serve.  If the growth of the church is anemic, it is due to our lack of love and mercy, not in the availability of God's grace. 

Showing the Way

Gospel: Matthew 8: 1-4

The Sermon on the Mount is completed.  Jesus comes down from the mountain in order to put the Beatitudes into practice in the world.  His first encounter is with a leper who approaches him begging to be healed.  The crowd is disgusted and appalled.  Lepers were the ultimate outcasts of society, the most unclean of the unclean.  No one would have any contact or association with a leper, no mercy or quarter shown to them.  Lepers were so due to sin in the eyes of the world at that time.  

Yet this encounter is the perfect opportunity for Jesus to demonstrate to his audience the radical meaning of all he taught on the mountaintop.  Jesus does not shrink from the encounter; he embraces it.  He has compassion and empathy for the leper which leads to an act of mercy in healing the leper of his ailment.  The Beatitudes are being applied right away, starting with the most marginalized member of society in ancient times.  

Jesus invites the leper into the world of the Beatitudes in inviting him to practice meekness.  Do not tell anyone about this healing.  Go instead and show yourself to the priests so that you may be restored to a place in society.  Offer a gift of thanksgiving to God for this great mercy.  But tell no one about it.  Go instead to have empathy for others, to extend mercy and loving kindness as it has been extended to you.  That is the invitation we have all received - we the spiritual lepers that we are.