Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 14, 2021
A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said,
“If you wish, you can make me clean.”
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, 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.
Then 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.
This gospel reminds me that Jesus wants all of us to be healed and made clean. This desire is represented in the healing of the leper in today’s reading. All of us need healing and cleansing in our lives, down through the ages since this encounter between Jesus and the leper. Baptism is one of the main vehicles through which we have access to the cleansing and healing that we hear about in today’s gospel.
On the face of it, this analogy between today’s gospel miracle and our own baptisms might not seem that appealing. Usually, we don’t remember our baptisms. The sin, brokenness, and pain in our lives are present now and baptism seems like something that exists only in the past. But the grace of that sacrament is with us throughout our lives and this reading is a reminder of Jesus’ desire to continually cleanse and heal us, like he did for the leper, through the power of the sacrament.
In this time of global pandemic, when our access to the sacraments is more limited than usual, I think it is useful to use Scripture to reflect on how God’s grace is present to us. Let us renew our baptismal commitment and be like the leper who brings himself before Jesus for healing. We know that Jesus will respond to us: “I do will it. Be made clean.”
Prayer
Protect us, Lord, from thinking that our healing depends on the strength and frequency of our prayers. Help us remember and proclaim to the world by our lives that through your Son you will it now and always that we be made and remain clean of heart and spirit. We make this prayer in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Macrina the Elder was the matriarch of a famously faithful family—her son and four of her grandchildren were named saints.
Two of these grandsons helped shape the faith that we proclaim today—Basil the Great, a doctor of the Church, and his brother, Gregory of Nyssa, who helped the Church better articulate her understanding of the Trinity. Both of these men played crucial roles in formulating the Nicene Creed that Catholics still recite every Sunday at Mass. Macrina raised both of these men and their influential younger sister, Macrina the Younger. She gave all these great saints their first religious instruction as children.
During a persecution of Christians, Macrina was forced to flee with her husband to safety. They left their home and hid in the woods for seven years. They were often hungry and had to live off of the land and whatever animals they could hunt. Not long after they were finally allowed to go home, another round of persecution took effect, and their possessions were confiscated.
Despite all these trials and tribulations, Macrina lived a long life and died around the year 340. She is a patron saint of widows and those facing poverty.
St. Macrina the Elder, grandmother who raised a great family for the Church—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Macrina the Elder is used with permission from Catholic Online. Last accessed November 22, 2024.