Friday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

Law of Moses; Law of Christ
Today, we begin a new section of the Gospel of Matthew: Jesus’ signs of healing. Jesus has concluded giving the new Law in his great Sermon on the Mount. He is now coming down from the mountain, just like Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the Law he received from God.

And what does Jesus do first? Rather, what first happens to him? Great crowds gather and follow him. Yet, a singular leper comes up to him. According to the Law of Moses, a leper was anyone with a skin infection and declared ritually unclean by a temple priest. (See Leviticus 13:2, 11) The leper was to stay away from the community until the infection was gone and the priest declared him clean again. (See Leviticus 14:2ff)

Yet, this leper approached Jesus amid the crowd, believing in his power to heal. A leper was to shout out, “Unclean, unclean!” when around others (see Leviticus 13:45), but we hear nothing of that. The leper does not ask, “Can you heal me?” Rather, he makes a statement of faith, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus, knowing the law about defilement by a leper, reaches out and touches him, saying, “I will do it. Be made clean.” And he was clean of his leprosy.

The leper would know the law to go to the temple priest and be declared ritually clean, performing the ritual bath and sacrifice, as prescribed by Moses. (See Leviticus 14:2ff) Jesus tells him to follow the law, but just not to tell anyone that he made him clean. This is peculiar, but perhaps it has something to do with the new Law that Jesus just taught. Jesus had said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Matthew 5:17)

Reflection: For those in Christ, there is a delicate balance to be struck between knowing and respecting the Law of Moses and knowing and following the Law of Christ.

Reflection by Br. Luke Kral, OSB