Reflection/Homily: Sixth (6th) Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B (February 12 2012)

Looking at the world, I think the world is suffering from IGNORANCE in PHD. PHD stands for Poverty, Hunger and Disease. Ignorance means lack of knowledge or awareness. It also includes lack of skills to solve a particular problem even if there is awareness of it. Poverty means the state of being extremely poor and we can confirm that most people in the world are not only financially poor but technically, structurally, academically, medically, etc poor. Hunger means among other things, a strong desire for something and we can see in people the hunger for food, basic amenities, wealth, fame, political positions, etc. Disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism and we can see the abnormal conditions like terrorism (especially the boko haram insurgence in Nigeria, ), war, pride, kidnapping, sickness, fraud, even ignorance, affecting man. These problems are in chains because a poor man is a hungry man, a hungry man is an angry man and an angry man is a sick man. Most often we lack something, hunger for something or suffer something but it becomes a big problem when one is ignorant of these situations or lacks the skills to confront them. Of all these, the worst is 




disease because its symptoms are always clear.

In today’s readings, we are presented with one of the worst diseases in the Jewish culture. The first reading tells us of the deplorable condition of a leper. A leper is unclean, rejected and ostracized. In the gospel reading, we see the response of a leper to this deplorable condition. The difference between him and other lepers is that he was neither ignorant of his problem nor how to go about it. He quickly approached Jesus and expressed a deep conviction that Jesus could solve his problem. Because of the level of self awareness and faith he expressed, he went home healed of that disease.

In the world today, leprosy does not seem to be the worst disease. Even people are currently challenged by cancer, HIV/AIDS, blindness, deformities, etc but through advancement in medicine, they are now able to overcome these diseases or at worst manage them. Most people are not ignorant in terms of managing their abnormal health conditions. However, today most people suffer the disease of sin. Most often, they are ignorant of this because they take their life styles to be on a par with modernity. Sin is advertised in fashion, on the screen, on the streets etc, so much so that it becomes part of us. Some few who can detect this ugly incident even are incapacitated to see themselves out of it. Sin is the disease worst disease we can think of because it not only separates us from God, it also spoils our relationship with one another, darkens our souls, makes us perpetual patients of hell, makes us unclean, keep us troubled, robs us of our innocence and separates us from the community of the faithful. It has personal and social consequences. When it becomes national like that of Sodom and Gomorrah, it could destroy a whole nation. Who knows if what we are suffering today is not as a result of our sins.

Therefore, there is need for us to learn from the leper in the gospel reading. If we are not ignorant of our sins, we must approach Jesus for healing since only him can heal us. If we are blind to see our sins, we must cry like Bartimaues “Lord that I may see”(Luke 18:41). Jesus can forgive us our sins and heal us from the wound of sin is we acknowledge our unworthiness before him. He will reconcile our relationship with God, ourselves, our neighbour and the Church which we have severed with our sins.

Thanks to God who has provided a good means of approaching Jesus for healing. The sacrament of penance (confession) is a specialist clinic where Jesus through his priest will diagnose and heal us of the disease of sin. Why not be a frequent patient at this clinic if not for healing, for check-up. At the confessional we receive hope, spiritual direction, forgiveness, healing and grace to overcome sin. It is only when we are free from sin can we do what St. Paul tells us in the second reading to give glory to God by being a perfect imitator of Christ who was like us in all things except sin. May we therefore ask our mother Mary who remained immaculate to help us in our weaknesses.

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