12 October 2025

12 October 2025 - 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Transcript

Reading:  

Luke 17:12

Write:  

As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him.

Reflect:   

What is leprosy today? Addictions? Divorce? Someone who’s had an abortion? Cancer? AIDS? Belonging to “the wrong political party”? Being a Catholic? Being some other religion? Being poor? Being rich? How many other things could we list? I am sure we could spend my entire time today coming up with things that we would list as being “worthy of rejection” as the lepers were rejected in Jesus’ day. Being homeless? Being an immigrant – of any kind?

Or, take it from St. Paul’s perspective: “such is my gospel, for which I am suffering, even to the point of chains, like a criminal.” These are not as disparate as they may seem. It is hard to visit someone in prison. And if someone is in prison for reasons that are not just, how do we react? Think of the Jewish kidnap victims in Gaza. Praise God it seems they will be released – possibly on Monday!

How often are we inclined to shun someone because they are… different? I knew two priests, one has died the other has retired, one was liberal one was conservative, but they went on vacations together. To be honest, I would not have wanted to go on vacation with either one of them. But then, my idea of an ideal vacation is sitting in my boat… by myself.

Apply:   

But, seriously, are there those who you come in contact with that are so “different” from yourself that you have some sort of… revulsion toward? With the actual lepers in Jesus’ day, it was a matter of survival. There was such a contagiousness with leprosy that people were completely cut off from family and friends.

Isn’t that what happened with Covid? Isn’t that what happened in some families with “political differences”? There were some people recently that were encouraging others not to spend time at the holidays with their families if they were supporters of a certain political bend. What is leprosy today?

There was a movie titled “The Fourth Wiseman” who came with jewels for the infant King. He missed the Holy Family and spent the rest of his life trying to catch up with them. Eventually, because he was a doctor as well, he ended up staying with a leper community in Israel. He used almost all his riches to help those who were sick. Then he heard that Jesus was about to be executed. He had one jewel left – the most precious and largest of all that he had – and he tried to buy Jesus’ freedom with it. Obviously, he failed. And he was near death laying in the street after buying someone else’s freedom with that jewel as Jesus hung on the cross. As he was dying in the street, Jesus died on the cross. But according to the story, the first thing Jesus did after he died was to come to visit this man – this Fourth Wiseman – and tell him “well done good and faithful servant; enter your master’s joy!”

So what of us? How do we see the leper in our day? Who do we see? Who do we serve?

St. Paul to Timothy today: “This saying is trustworthy:

If we have died with him

we shall also live with him;

if we persevere

we shall also reign with him.

But if we deny him

he will deny us.”

I have to admit it: there are those I would choose not to approach with the hand of Jesus. It is hard with certain types of people. And I would be very surprised if there were no one who would not approach me – for any number of reasons. First of all because of the crazy clothes I wear! I think all of us have our own prejudices. But, in Jesus are any of them justifiable? Who is a leper to you?

On Thursday, Pope Leo published his first Apostolic Exhortation. It is titled “On Love for the Poor.” This is what he says in the first chapter, quoting Pope Francis:

Looking beyond the data — which is sometimes “interpreted” to convince us that the situation of the poor is not so serious — the overall reality is quite evident: “Some economic rules have proved effective for growth, but not for integral human development. Wealth has increased, but together with inequality, with the result that ‘new forms of poverty are emerging.’ The claim that the modern world has reduced poverty is made by measuring poverty with criteria from the past that do not correspond to present-day realities. In other times, for example, lack of access to electric energy was not considered a sign of poverty, nor was it a source of hardship.

We have to face it: we live in a privileged society compared to many parts of the world. What is our attitude toward the lepers of today?

I do not think it is a mistake to apply the closing line of the gospel to ourselves. But it does take on a different meaning. Do we give thanks for all we have received as the cured leper did when he returned to Jesus? Do we see ourselves as healed – or still in need of healing? “Then [Jesus] said to him, ‘Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.’”

Pray/Praise:   

Lord Jesus, you did not hesitate to reach out to the leper or to any number of people who were ostracized by society. Help us to understand that you call us to do the same for the sake of those around us, regardless of whether they are our brothers and sisters or not. Help us to see that you have already begun the healing in us, and that you call us to share that healing with everyone.

Strengthen us that we may be good and proper witnesses to your glory. And on this deacon appreciation weekend, fill our deacons in a special way with a care for the lepers of today. And may we follow their example for your glory and the healing of our world.

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