The story of the leper, the outcast, seeking healing from Jesus is one of the great stories of the inclusive love of God for all people. No-one, just no-one is excluded. As Jesus reached out to touch the man with leprosy so He reaches out to each one of us. In healing the outcast, Jesus made himself an outcast. He associated himself completely with the person no one else would associate with. This is the open invitation of Jesus: reach out to him and he will reach out to us. A perfect starting point for our journey with Jesus in the six weeks before Easter.
The sad fact is that today may people feel themselves to be outcasts among whom are the refugees, the dispossessed, the homeless. The website ‘Pray as you Go’ offers a series of reflections for Lent on the refugee homeless. It would probably take you about 15 minutes to pray through the first reflection. Try it – it may change your life, attitudes and your way of interacting with people. In the news here in Los Angeles is a report on the deportation of refugee children back across the border to Mexico. Over 70% of these children are deported by court order without any legal representation in court for them!
Another on-line retreat for Lent is offered on the sacred space website. This one puts us in the place of the women who appear in the stories of the days leading up to the death of Jesus, his Crucifixion and Resurrection. Well worth a look.
