March 15, 2004 Monday of the 3rd Week of Lent
Let’s take a look at the first reading. It’s a real handful. We have Naaman, a Syrian army commander who has leprosy. Naaman’s wife has a slave who tells Naaman that there is a prophet in Samaria who could cure him.
Remember that Syria and Israel didn’t like each other any better back then than they do now. Still, a cure is a cure. Naaman goes to his king and tells him what the slave said. The king says “go for it. I’ll write a letter to the king of Israel and tell him you’re coming.”
The king of Israel reads the letter and tears his garments. That means he wasn’t happy. He thinks the king of Aram is trying to make him look bad. Elisha the prophet hears about the king’s fit and sends word to him. “Why have you torn your garments? Send him to me. I’ll show him what a REAL Hebrew prophet can do.”
So Naaman goes to Elisha’s house. The prophet sends him a message to go wash in the Jordan river. Now Naaman’s mad. First, Elisha sent a message instead of seeing him in person. Second, the Jordan was a dirty, muddy stream. Back in Syria, the rivers run clean. Telling Naaman that he will get clean by bathing in the Jordan is like telling someone from the Ozarks that they’ll get clean by wading in the Mississippi.
But, Naaman’s servants reason with him. They tell him he should do what the prophet said. So he goes down and dunks himself in the Jordan seven times. Lo and behold, he’s cured. He goes back to Elisha and says “Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel.”
In the Gospel, Jesus refers to this story when he’s preaching in the Synagogue. It’s near the beginning of His ministry. He has been preaching and performing miracles. He returns to his home town and gets a cool reception. The townspeople are wondering how this carpenter, the guy who made their coffee tables and entertainment centers, could be so smart all of a sudden. He uses the story of Naaman to make his point. He also refers to the story of Elija being sent to a widow in Sidon. Great Hebrew prophets working miracles with non-Hebrews because their own people were not as receptive as they should have been.
This is a precursor to Christ’s ministry. Today the people of Nazareth, his home town, try to throw him off a cliff. In the end, it’s his own people who will turn Him over to the Romans. He came as the Jewish Messiah, but His church would spread throughout the world, to people of all backgrounds and nationalities.
It’s not that much different today. Our faith is growing in places like Africa and Asia, while in the so-called Christian countries, divorce, abortion and pornography are rampant. We don’t have enough priests to go around so men like Father Gary are working three jobs. So, as we approach Easter, let’s pray that Christians everywhere take Christ’s message seriously. All He really asked us to do was to love one another as we love ourselves.
Remember that Syria and Israel didn’t like each other any better back then than they do now. Still, a cure is a cure. Naaman goes to his king and tells him what the slave said. The king says “go for it. I’ll write a letter to the king of Israel and tell him you’re coming.”
The king of Israel reads the letter and tears his garments. That means he wasn’t happy. He thinks the king of Aram is trying to make him look bad. Elisha the prophet hears about the king’s fit and sends word to him. “Why have you torn your garments? Send him to me. I’ll show him what a REAL Hebrew prophet can do.”
So Naaman goes to Elisha’s house. The prophet sends him a message to go wash in the Jordan river. Now Naaman’s mad. First, Elisha sent a message instead of seeing him in person. Second, the Jordan was a dirty, muddy stream. Back in Syria, the rivers run clean. Telling Naaman that he will get clean by bathing in the Jordan is like telling someone from the Ozarks that they’ll get clean by wading in the Mississippi.
But, Naaman’s servants reason with him. They tell him he should do what the prophet said. So he goes down and dunks himself in the Jordan seven times. Lo and behold, he’s cured. He goes back to Elisha and says “Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel.”
In the Gospel, Jesus refers to this story when he’s preaching in the Synagogue. It’s near the beginning of His ministry. He has been preaching and performing miracles. He returns to his home town and gets a cool reception. The townspeople are wondering how this carpenter, the guy who made their coffee tables and entertainment centers, could be so smart all of a sudden. He uses the story of Naaman to make his point. He also refers to the story of Elija being sent to a widow in Sidon. Great Hebrew prophets working miracles with non-Hebrews because their own people were not as receptive as they should have been.
This is a precursor to Christ’s ministry. Today the people of Nazareth, his home town, try to throw him off a cliff. In the end, it’s his own people who will turn Him over to the Romans. He came as the Jewish Messiah, but His church would spread throughout the world, to people of all backgrounds and nationalities.
It’s not that much different today. Our faith is growing in places like Africa and Asia, while in the so-called Christian countries, divorce, abortion and pornography are rampant. We don’t have enough priests to go around so men like Father Gary are working three jobs. So, as we approach Easter, let’s pray that Christians everywhere take Christ’s message seriously. All He really asked us to do was to love one another as we love ourselves.
posted by Mike at 1:09 PM
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