Transforming Presence of Christ

Transforming Presence of Christ

Luke 5:12-16

The cleansing of the leper is that recorded by Luke (5:12-16) about A.D. 90. Like Mark, from whom he got the story, Luke retains the stress on Christology and, indeed, heightens it. In this text Jesus is addressed as "Lord," and the leper "bowed with his face to the ground and begged " in the same manner as one would implore God in prayer (5:12).

Before we enter into the passage let us have a close look at the characters described in this healing

Leper  A leper is considered as an outcast in many respects during Jesus’ time. Religion of  considered leprosy as the result of sin and God’s anger. They believed that leprosy is due to disobedience to God and leprosy is the outcome of sinfulness and the wrath of God. This disease created a terror in the minds of the people in many ways.

Lepers were:

a. Religiously impure and had no space in the Temple of God

b. Outcasts and untouchable and had no space in the society.

c. Physically, Mentally, Spiritually downtrodden. They were the most unwanted people in the society and they were ‘no people’ and rights were negated to him/her as a human being

d. They unclean before the Lord until they were healed and ceremonially cleansed and they were not in the realm of politics that negated his/her rights to engage in the decisions of the state or religion

Society  Even though society is not in the picture explicitly, Jesus healed this leper in a public space where society was keen in the actions of Jesus particularly on a leper. This society (in general) was ‘righteous’ and they were trying to stigmatise the ‘unrighteous’ people. Instead of liberating nature, this society centred around an exploitative and divisive value system where human took control over other humans. Love of God, redeeming presence of God and healing engagements of God was absent and thereby it created an unjust social, religious and political premise.

Jesus Christ  A man without any stigma or prejudice(that is the nature of God) and incarnated to this earth to bring liberation, reconciliation and healing(mission imperatives of God)  in the midst of human made oppression, discrimination, division and violence(sinfulness). Jesus bought life in its fullness in the midst of life negation and

1.  Divine Presence  and Public Sphere

Leper  was sick, untouchable, poor and weak and the  burden/separation/alienation/ otherness was unimaginable. The premise were this leper lived was unjust, undemocratic and it was governed by ‘righteous and powerful people’. Their rule silenced the ‘unrighteous’ and ‘sinful’ and thereby created a public sphere which was so oppressive and unequal. Cleansing the leper is a paradigm of God’s intervention in the midst of such system and portrays the transforming presence of God.

The public sphere which he lived was so oppressive and thereby  so called ‘untouchables’ were thrown out of the public space. The religious, political, social and cultural iron hands ‘silenced’ them and considered them as the ‘unwanted people’. The nature of relationship models existed at that time was  superior-inferior, righteous -unrighteous, powerful- powerless and it created a chaotic relationship pattern and many were ‘out’ from the society and from the loving and liberating engagements of the God

The transforming presence of God bought healing to this leper and thereby he was restored in the religious, political, and social realms. This purposeful and deliberate action of Jesus reveals God’s nature and divine mission in this earth. Transforming divine engagements always in conflict with the unjust relationship and value system.

Life and ministry of Jesus created a space where all are respected, accepted and restored. The very presence of Christ have given a freedom that motivated the leper to go to Jesus. Healing, restoration and redemption will be a mere myth in an unwelcoming, and dominating premise. Christ was in conflict with such premise and its agents and inaugurated a premise which is God centred and life affirmed. This is the beginning of the redemption and restoration.

When God created the earth, it was equal and just but later the human being created lot of walls of separation and discrimination in the names of disease, gender, and profession and it created wounds in the body and psyche of many. The very purpose of God’s journey from heaven to this earth(incarnation) was to redeem the life from such divisions and wounds and offer God’s healing

2. Divine Gestures, Words and Transformation

According to the rules and regulations of the society lepers should keep a distance from the mainstream engagements and interactions. But here the picture is entirely different, leper came near to Jesus and bowed with his face to the ground and made a request

“Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean”. The response of Jesus was quick, liberating,  life giving(God’s nature flown through Jesus) and transforming. “ Then Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, I do choose. Be made clean”. Divine gestures and words of Jesus emphasised God’s healing and redeeming presence and actions.

When Jesus touched him,  division and discrimination imposed on him was dissolved and abolished and thereby he was restored in to the society. In way ‘sinner, unrighteous’ leper was welcomed to the premise where God’s salvation is available to all. Divine gestures of Jesus broke the walls of separation, division and discrimination and affirmed communion, reconciliation and oneness in God through Jesus Christ to any ‘unwanted, powerless and sinful’ person. Christ welcomed leper to the premise of God’s Kingdom where love, peace and justice defines the relationship.

The words of Jesus challenges the very notion of clean and unclean definitions of a sinful structures and powers. Jesus indirectly told that God desires that your life should be in its fullness and you have the right to be clean and live. By his words Jesus affirms you are wanted in the Kingdom of God in the midst of ‘unwelcoming society’ and your presence have greater value in the midst of ‘discriminating society’. When Jesus said, “I choose”, Jesus affirms that God always uphold life in the midst of death and alienation. Words of God are transforming and in conflict with the words of this world. When this world unwelcome us, God welcomes us to God’s Kingdom by transforming our life. Jesus decided to heal the leper as an outward expression of God’s divine love in the midst of evils like discrimination, alienation and divisions

3. Relevance of the Passage

We are living in a world of war, violence, discrimination, alienation, oppression.  This violent and dominating world create outcasts and untouchables in the name of religion, gender, politics, culture, gender orientations etc. Prejudice and stigma controls over our imagination ,language, decisions, and our relationships. We brand many people and communities as ‘sinful’ with our parochial understanding and arrogant ideologies and theologies. But Christ always walks around the cities and villages and looking for the outcasts and untouchables of today. The issues like casteism, gender issues, AIDS,  sex orientations, poverty,  have to be addressed seriously by the church as Christ addressed many social and political issues at his time. Nations, faiths, communities, individuals are outside the gates of the mainstream and thirsting for justice and peace.

Do we able to engage ourselves with healing and restoring gestures and life giving and redeeming words?

Are we with God in the mission of transformation or are we with evil in the process of violence, discrimination and death?

How did we approach the so called ‘sinners’ of today? With a prejudice and stigma? Do we brand ourselves as righteous and others (so called sinners of today) as unclean?

Lent is the time of reconciliation, healing, restoration, redemption and we are preparing ourselves in journey of solidarity, suffering, and crucifixion. This journey is in conflict with the dominant value system and cross is inevitable an unavoidable. Lent is a time to prepare ourselves with God in this great journey. As a Church let us create a just space where all are welcomed and respected.