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June 1, 2006 (Thursday in the 7th Week of Easter)
Readings: Acts 22:30; 23:6-11/Jn 17:20-26
The gospel today contains the very important petition of Christ for unity. "That all may be one, just as you Father, in me and I in you; that they may be one, just as we are one." This prayer of Christ was for the unity of all those who would follow him. It is the basis for our great yearning that divisions among Christians should disappear.
We must also recognize the fact that, even from the very start of the Church, there were factions that arose. In spite of these, the Church must continue along the path of unity and charity. One of the most important aspects of the ministry of the Pope is precisely the promotion and the preservation of unity in the Church. That is why we must all pray for the movement for the unity of Christians. We must remember that, while we acknowledge the existing differences, we must focus more on the numerous elements that unify us with all Christian Churches and communities.
June 2, 2006 (Friday in the 7th Week of Easter)
Readings: Acts 25:13b-21/ Jn 21:15-19
Three times did Peter deny Christ. Now, after the resurrection, Jesus Christ gives Peter three chances to affirm his loyalty to Christ. At each affirmation, Jesus confirmed the task of Peter, "Feed my lambs… feed my sheep."
The successor of Peter in his apostolic ministry is the Pope, the bishop of Rome, the city where Peter died as a martyr. Hence, the Pope continues to have a direct and immediate responsibility over each and every member of the Church of Christ. Each bishop, successor of the apostles, is also immediately responsible for the faithful under his diocese. To take care of the sheep of Christ is a very great responsibility. Hence, we should all pray for the Pope and for all the bishops in union with the Pope. Our prayers will help them carry this burden put on their shoulders by Christ himself.
June 3, 2006 (Saturday in the 7th Week of Easter)
Readings: Acts 28:16-20, 30-31/Jn 21:20-25
The gospel today is the end of the gospel according to St. John. It contains a phrase that can answer the common error that whatever is not found in the bible is not part of Christ's teaching. St. John said, "There are many other things that Jesus did; but if every one of these should be written, not even the world itself, I think, could hold the books that would have to be written. Amen."
So for those who say that everything should be found in the bible only, we must say that the bible itself says that there are other things that are not found in it. The Catholic Church has always maintained that while the bible is a very important source of what Christ said and did, we cannot be limited to the bible. We must also consider "Sacred Tradition", referring to all the teachings and practices that Jesus taught, gave to the apostles to pass on, and is now faithfully transmitted and safeguarded by the Church, like a continuously flowing river of life.
June 4, 2006 (PENTECOST SUNDAY)
Readings: Day: Acts 2:1-11/ 1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13 or Gal 5:16-25/ Jn 20:19-23 or Jn 15:26-27; 16:12-15
Today we remember that important event when the Holy Spirit descended upon the early Church in the form of tongues of fire and as a strong wind. The Holy Spirit transformed those cowardly people into fervent missionaries, ready to face persecution and death. The early Church went out of its seclusion in order to bravely proclaim Christ. Hence, today is considered to be the "birthday" of the Church, since the birthday is when a person comes out of the seclusion of the maternal womb.
But the pouring forth of the Holy Spirit is not something that happened and ended about two thousand years ago. That was only the beginning. The Holy Spirit continues to be present in all the ages of the Church. The Holy Spirit is like the soul of the Church, which is the mystical body of Christ. As the Church is alive now in its members, in its teachings and in its sanctifying activities, so the Holy Spirit continues to act.
Let us pray to receive him: "Come O Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love."
June 5, 2006 (Monday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Pt 1:2-7/Mk 12:1-12
The parable of the unjust and murderous vinedressers ends with these prophetic words, which Jesus Christ applied to himself: "The stone which the builders rejected, has become the cornerstone." Indeed, Jesus would be rejected by the leaders of the Jewish people of his time. Then Jesus will be the foundation of the New People of God, the Church.
But we can also apply these words in a spiritual sense. Very often, the values which the world rejects are the very values which should serve as the foundation for a strong civilization.. For example, the Christian virtue of chastity is like the cornerstone of strong marriages and of stable families. If spouses do not know how to be chaste, they will find it hard to be faithful. And without faithfulness, the family institution becomes unstable. But by promoting immoral sexual behavior ("safe sex", contraceptives) with the pretense of reproductive health, some of our leaders will end up undermining the foundations of our society.
June 6, 2006 (Tuesday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Pt 3:12-15a, 17-18/Mk 12:13-17
"Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." This statement supports the teaching of the Church about the legitimate autonomy of temporal affairs. That teaching recognizes that in the social sphere, God has entrusted to men an area of responsibility in which they must use their own judgments, guided by the light of natural law and in some cases helped by their Christian faith.
An application of this is in the understanding of the distinct roles of Church and State. In his first encyclical, Pope Benedict XVI pointed out that "The just ordering of society and the State is a central responsibility of politics." He then stated the role of the Church thus: "The Church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring about the most just society possible. She cannot and must not replace the State." (No. 28) He later clarified that the Church has to enlighten the consciences of citizens. The lay faithful in the Church are the ones responsible for the penetration of Christian values into civil society.
June 7, 2006 (Wednesday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Tm 1:1-3, 6-12/Mk 12:18-27
The gospel today lends support to the observation of a contemporary writer – an observation that, at first sight, might seem quite shocking. "Celibacy is not only for priests and religious, it is for everyone!" He did not mean, of course, that no one should get married or that there is anything wrong with the vast majority of Catholics who are called by God to the married life. It is simply a reminder of our transcendental vocation to go to heaven.
Jesus said, "For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven." Indeed, that is where it will all lead. It means that the institution and sacrament of marriage are meant for THIS world, but not for the next. That is why it is really very fitting and appropriate that ministers of God and persons dedicated to the promotion of the Kingdom of Heaven, should practice apostolic celibacy.
June 8, 2006 (Thursday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Tm 2:8-15/Mk 12:28-34
In the previous gospel, we have an example of a person who, with ill will, tries to trap Jesus in his words. By contrast, today's gospel shows us a person, also a scribe, who has good will and is seeking the truth. He is described as a man who, seeing that Jesus "had answered well," decided to ask his question – implying that he was sincerely looking for the adequate answer.
Thus, after Jesus had repeated the great commandments of the total love of God and the love of neighbor, the man readily agreed with Jesus. He was confirmed in his sincere convictions. But we are impressed even more by the Lord's rejoinder to this man: "You are not far from the Kingdom of Heaven." Indeed, a person who sincerely seeks God and the Truth will not be left hanging in his quest, by our merciful and provident God.
June 9, 2006 (Friday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Tm 3:10-17/Mk 12:35-37
Humanly speaking, the Christ or Messiah was supposed to be a descendant of the King David. Hence some of the gospels meticulously trace the lineage of Jesus all the way to David or to Adam by way of David. But in the gospel today, Jesus Christ pointed out that this human lineage was not enough. If the Christ is "Lord" of David, then the Messiah is somehow beyond the lineage of David. Later on, Jesus Christ will state his identification with God himself.
The divine nature and origin of Christ is at the very heart of our Christian faith. The Christ is our Savior (Jesus) because he is both God and Man. As man, Jesus truly represents us, fallen mankind. But only as God, infinite in goodness and mercy, could the man Jesus make a sacrifice that would be acceptable to God and that would atone for the sin of our first parents and the sins of all mankind. When faced with allegations that Jesus was only a man (as in the outlandish theories that he was only "divinized" by popular acclaim), let us profess our Christian faith in the true divinity of Jesus Christ, who, in the words of the apostles Thomas is, "My Lord and my God."
June 10, 2006 (Saturday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Tm 4:1-8/Mk 12:38-44
"Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury." How reassuring! In order to be generous, we do not have to be materially rich. Generosity is a disposition of the heart. It is associated with mercy – the love that identifies with the need of others and seeks to alleviate them.
Being materially poor may facilitate the virtue of mercy. By experiencing suffering, we can more easily identify with those who suffer. That is why ironically, sometimes we find persons who are materially deprived who are more ready to share their limited goods with others than those who are basking in wealth. But since suffering is a universal reality, the rich too are called to be merciful and generous. God will ask more from those who are given more.
June 11, 2006 (THE MOST HOLY TRINITY)
Readings: Dt 4:32-34, 39-40/Rom 8:14-17/Mt 28:16-20
The mystery of the Blessed Trinity is the central and most important revelation that God has made to us. We believe that there is only one God, for there can be only one Supreme Being. But Christ has revealed to us that the one God is not a solitary or lonely God. He subsists in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, in complete unity. We cannot fathom this truth but we can only accept it with humility.
There is a beautiful and ancient prayer that has gained popularity with the spread of the Hour of Divine Mercy devotion. God is addressed as follows: "Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One." It is an echo of the so-called "Angelic Trisagion" or the "Triple Holy prayer of the angels." This prayer, echoed at the Mass in the "Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus" is a veiled allusion to the mystery of the Trinitarian God.
If we take a look at our Christian beliefs, we will see that without this teaching on the Trinity, everything else will fall flat. Christ came to redeem us because he was sent by God the Father. Jesus Christ, who is the only-begotten Son of the Father, is the Son of God and therefore is of a divine nature. Christ is our redeemer because he is the God-made-man. The Holy Spirit, who came fully at Pentecost, is sent by the Father and the Son to complete the work of our redemption. The Holy Spirit applies the power of the redemption to us. He is the sanctifier. That is why the prayers of the Church invoke the Trinity. We see this connection between the Trinity and our salvation in the sign of the cross.
June 12, 2006 (Monday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 17:1-6/ Mt 5:1-12
The "Eight Beatitudes" give us a summary of the requirements of the Christian life. Before the beatitudes, the Old Testament already contained the Ten Commandments. The commandments specified the requirements of natural morality. As a test of love, Jesus would ask the people to "keep the commandments" and in the case of the rich young man, Jesus said that he had to fulfill the commandments if he wanted to enter eternal life.
But the Beatitudes go beyond the requirements of natural morality. The Beatitudes refer to the new order and standard of Christian living that is governed by the supernatural virtue of Charity and which requires the help of God's grace. The Beatitudes ask for a deeper conversion of heart for the sake of the "Kingdom of heaven" – of that new reality that Jesus has opened up for all his disciples.
June 13, 2006 (Tuesday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 17:7-16/ Mt 5:13-16
In the gospel today, Jesus compared his disciples to salt. He then says that salt would be useless if it were to lose its strength.
We are all familiar with the use of salt as a table condiment. It gives tang to insipid food. In ancient times, salt had an even more important use. It was necessary to preserve food from decaying, much as we preserve "daing" and "tuyo" (dried fish) in the Philippines. On both counts (giving taste and preserving from decay) the Christian presence in the world can be compared to salt. So we can apply the Lord's advice. If a Christian does not sincerely cultivate his Christian life, his spirituality, then he cannot give his flavor to the surroundings. He will not be able to fight the forces of decay and corruption in society.
June 14, 2006 (Wednesday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 18:20-39/ Mt 5:17-19
Jesus said that he did not come "to destroy the Law or the Prophets" but rather "to fulfill them" or to bring them to perfection.
There is a "natural law", based on human nature, which applies to all men. This law is contained in God's revelation of the Ten Commandments. No matter what their belief may be, these basic demands of morality are applicable to all men. But Jesus came to bring us the "law of grace" which brings along with it the help of God to be able to fulfill the requirements of natural law and even go beyond that. For example, natural law ("Thou shalt not steal") requires that we be just in respecting the property of others. But Christ requires more than justice. We must practice generosity with others and detachment from our own goods for the needs of others.
June 15, 2006 (Thursday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 18:41-46/ Mt 5:20-26
In the gospel today, Jesus warns us against harboring hatred towards our neighbor. So important is it to have a heart free of hatred that it even takes precedence over the external fulfillment of our acts of worship. Indeed, our acts of worship to God would be meaningless or contradictory if we harbored hatred towards any person, because God loves each one and goes out of his way to seek out the lost sheep.
Conflicts with other people, differences of opinion or preferences, are inevitable. But these do not have to lead to hatred. When clashes arise, we should seek to minimize it and, if it does occur, we should remove any rancor from our heart. This is more easily said than done. Quite often, we need to ask God to give us a heart like Christ's, ready to forgive even those who were unjustly crucifying him.
June 16, 2006 (Friday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 19:9a, 11-16/ Mt 5:27-32
Jesus' words are crystal clear: "I say to you that anyone who so much as looks with lust at a woman has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Sin comes from the heart of man. That is why bad thoughts are sinful even if they are not executed. The struggle to be good must be waged in our thoughts, by not consenting to the suggestions that may come from the devil or our own sensuality.
We should bring the effort to be pure even one step ahead. Many impure thoughts are initiated by images and other sensory inputs. Hence we should guard what we see and hear. That is why we should avoid forms of entertainment that capitalize on impurity.
June 17, 2006 (Saturday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 19:19-21/Mt 5:33-37
"Let your speech be, 'Yes, yes'; or 'No, no'." We can consider these words of Christ as an injunction to be very truthful. It is very refreshing to know that one is dealing with a person who is sincere. On the other hand, it is very difficult to deal with a person whose words are not trustworthy.
In order to grow in the virtue of sincerity, we should cultivate a genuine love for the truth. We must abide by the truth; even the truth brings difficulties along with it. Lying tends to feed on itself. One lie requires another lie in order to cover up. After a while, a liar may even end up believing his own lies and living in a make-believe world of fantasy.
June 18, 2006 (THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST)
Readings: Ex 24:3-8/Heb 9:11-15/Mk 14:12-16, 22-26
Today is the special day of the year when we celebrate the Eucharist. At a time in the 13th Century when some people questioned the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, the Church wanted to honor this sacrament in a special way. In the gospel, we recall the words of Christ to the people, telling them that his flesh was indeed food and his blood, drink. This scandalized most of his listeners. Yet Christ did not back out from that statement. Later on, at the last supper, it would be made clear that the bread would be transformed into his body and the wine into his blood, at the words of the consecration.
This is the reason why we must firmly believe in the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. He is truly present, not just in a symbolic way. He is present really and substantially, but under the appearance of bread and wine. This is a great mystery of our faith. But we must believe whatever Christ has revealed. It seems difficult, but it is not impossible. In the words of the hymn by St. Thomas Aquinas, "What the truth (Christ) has spoken, that for truth we hold."
June 19, 2006 (Monday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 21:1-16/ Mt 5:38-42
Jesus Christ rejected the law of Talion which said, "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." Instead, he encouraged us to be forgiving. It is in this light that we can understand better what the Church teaches regarding the death penalty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains the position expounded by the Pope John Paul II that, in these contemporary times, there can hardly be any justification for the application of such a severe form of punishment.
If we consider it objectively, the goods that we may want to achieve from the death penalty could be gotten in other ways, without snuffing the life of the criminal. To execute out of a desire for revenge only prolongs the chain of evil, hatred and suffering that we all want to avoid.
June 20, 2006 (Tuesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 1 Kgs 21:17-29/ Mt 5:43-48
To the great crowd of people who were listening to him in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ addressed these words that we find in today's gospel reading: "You therefore are to be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect."
A pioneer in lay spirituality, St. Josemaria Escriva, has the following commentary on this passage, which many of us can benefit from: "You have the obligation to sanctify yourself. Yes, even you! Who thinks this is the exclusive concern of priests and religious? To everyone, without exception, our Lord said, 'Be perfect, as my heavenly Father is perfect.' " (Escriva, The Way, No. 291)
June 21, 2006 (Wednesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Kgs 2:1, 6-14/ Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
The gospel message for today can perhaps be summarized as the need to have the right intention in everything we do. We should not do things in order to be praised by men.
This idea ties up with the "battle cry" of St. Ignatius of Loyola, ad majorem Dei gloriam, "for the greater glory of God." We must do everything with that end in mind. It is a good way of making sure that we have the right intention, the correct motivation for all our works and projects. Some people place the initials "a.m.d.g." (standing for that phrase) in their writings, as a concrete way of rectifying their intention.
June 22, 2006 (Thursday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: Sir 48:1-14/ Mt 6:7-15
At the end of the Lord's prayer, Christ elaborates more on one of its points, thus showing us its importance. "For if you forgive men their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you your offenses. But if you do not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your offenses."
Forgiving those who have offended us is one of the easiest things to say, but it is the hardest thing to do. Perhaps part of the reason is that the offenses we receive are so concrete and specific, they remain etched in our memory; while the counsel to forgive is general and abstract. That is why, one way of helping us to forgive is to think vividly of Christ's sufferings on the cross. He gave us this lesson of forgiveness not as an abstraction but as something he himself practiced as he was gasping for breath on the cross. Hence, a prayerful person can forgive more easily.
June 23, 2006 (The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus)
Readings: Hos 11:1, 3-4, 8c-9/Eph 3:8-12, 14-19/Jn 19:31-37
The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus emphasizes the great love that Jesus Christ, who is both God and man, has for all of us. The heart refers to the whole human personality, the deepest core of our being. The divine love, which is infinite, is manifested to us in a very human way. There is a saying in Spanish, "Amor con amor se paga." (Love is reciprocated by love)
When we realize how much Christ loves us, we will be drawn to love him in return. "Greater love than this, no man has, that he should lay down his life for his friends." The ultimate proof of Christ's love for each one of us was his passion and death on the cross. That is why the Sacred Heart of Jesus is represented to us as burning in flames (representing love), wounded and surrounded by a crown of thorns. Let us exclaim, "Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us!"
June 24, 2006 (The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist)
Readings: Is 49:1-6/Acts 13:22-26/Lk 1:57-66, 80
St. John the Baptist was the chosen person to prepare the coming of the Messiah. When Mary visited Elizabeth, the pregnant mother of John the Baptist, the baby in her womb leapt for joy. The baby in the womb sensed the presence of Christ, also in the womb (of Mary). The liturgical celebration of John the Baptist's birth is an indication of the belief of the Church that John was sanctified even before he was born.
John the Baptist led an austere life in the wilderness of the mountains of Judea. His words gained credibility because of his radical detachment from material goods and his difficult lifestyle. He can be considered a model of the consecrated religious life. By making a radical profession of chastity, poverty and obedience, the consecrated person becomes a credible witness of the Christian message. Let us pray that all consecrated persons be faithful to their vows and their mission.
June 25, 2006 (TWELFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME)
Readings: Jb 38:1, 8-11/2 Cor 5:14-17/Mk 4:35-41
How tired Jesus Christ must have been! The fishing boat where he was sleeping was being buffeted by great waves. Water was coming in from the rain and from the splashing of the waves. The apostles who were manning the boat could no longer cope. But in the midst of all these, Christ was asleep. "Master, are you not concerned that we are perishing?" That is how the apostles justified their action of waking up Jesus. And in one act, Jesus restores calm to the wind and the sea.
Something similar can happen in the life of each one of us. We go about our day-to-day existence, fulfilling our duties, trying to do good. We try to keep close to Christ. Yet a storm comes. God allows suffering to enter our life. It may be a serious financial set-back, it may be a family problem. It may take the form of external aggression or even simply of internal turmoil. Like the apostles in the boat, our first reaction may be one of panic. We may feel that God has abandoned us. We feel like "waking him up" and telling him, "Hey, don't you know this is happening to me? Do something!" It is the moment to put our faith into action. Is Christ still in the boat? Then there is no reason to be afraid or to get disturbed. That storm will pass and calm will be restored. Besides, some unsuspected good will come out of it in accordance with the saying of St. Paul, "For those who love God, everything works out for the good."
But remember, Christ has to be in the boat, even if he seems to be asleep. If we take Christ out of the boat or if we abandon the boat where Christ seems to be sleeping, and try instead to save ourselves by jumping into the storming waters, we can no longer count on the assuring presence of Christ.
June 26, 2006 (Monday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Kgs 17:5-8, 13-15a, 18/ Mt 7:1-5
"Why do you observe the splinter in your brother's eye and never notice the plank in your own?" With this very graphic way of expressing, Jesus is telling us that we should not be hasty in judging the faults of others.
We all have a tendency to be harsh when considering another person's action, and too understanding when considering our own actions. This often gives rise to social conflicts. We can reverse this trend by heeding the words of Jesus. When you judge your own actions, try to be objective. Even more, be ready to admit the faults that you can notice since you are so close to your own actions. On the other hand, when we have to judge another person's actions, let us remember that we can never see the intentions of that person. Hence we should seek excuses for them.
June 27, 2006 (Tuesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Kgs 19:9b-11, 14-21, 31-35a, 36/Mt 7:6, 12-14
God wants us to be happy and to go to heaven. But the way to happiness is not easy. In the gospel, Jesus says, "Enter by the narrow gate… How narrow the gate and close the way that leads to life!"
We naturally try to avoid difficulties. Yet it is the common experience that when something is really precious, it will entail some sacrifice. If we went shopping and found what seems to be a valuable item, but we also find that the price tag is ridiculously cheap, we would be justified in suspecting that it must not really be that valuable. Unfortunately, there are some "prophets" who would readily water down the moral demands of the faith with the false hope of thereby gaining more followers. They would like to have an easy-going and comfortable Christianity – but it would not be the genuine product. It would not be the religion taught by Christ who saved us through the scandal of the cross.
June 28, 2006 (Wednesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Kgs 22:8-13; 23:1-3/ Mt 7:15-20
"Beware of false prophets… You will be able to tell them by their fruits." This is a sound piece of advice to help us discern true from false teachers. Wrong teaching will end up in wrong practices.
The Christian faithful have a certain sensitivity to what is right and wrong when it comes to faith and morals. Some people call it "having a Catholic nose." The documents of the Church refer to the so-called "sensus fidelium", or sense of the faithful. While matters of faith are not decided by a raising of hands, pastors would do well in being attentive to the sensibilities of the Christian faithful. We must give importance to the different manifestations of popular piety.
June 29, 2006 (Saint Peter and Saint Paul, apostles)
Readings: Day: Acts 12:1-11/ 2 Tm 4:6-8, 17-18/ Mt 16:13-19
The celebration of the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul is very important for the whole Church. St. Peter was designated by Christ to be the head of the Catholic Church. St. Paul, by a special plan of God, was the great apostle of the gentiles, the person who made the Church spread out because of his apostolic zeal. Both these apostles were martyred in the City of Rome, thus making Rome the center of the Catholic world.
The Pope is the head of the Church because, as bishop of Rome, he is the successor of St. Peter. Because of St. Peter, the Church of Rome was, from the earliest days of Christianity, accepted as the head of all the other Churches. This primacy and leadership is not exercised in a despotic way, but it is a service of charity. When the Pope exercises his authority, he is doing what Christ told Peter to do, "Feed my lambs…feed my sheep."
June 30, 2006 (Friday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time)
Readings: 2 Kgs 25:1-12/Mt 8:1-4
Leprosy was a dreaded disease because it was incurable and highly contagious. Yet because of the faith and trust of the leper in today's gospel, Jesus Christ cured him. Making an allegorical interpretation of these passages, we can compare the bodily sickness of leprosy to the spiritual illness of the soul, which is sin. Without Jesus, sin would also be incurable – man cannot forgive himself, no matter how sorry he was. Left to himself, man would go from one sin to the other in a crescendo of sinfulness and misery. Yet we have the remedy to sin in our faith and trust in Christ.
The comparison based on today's gospel can be stretched even further. Jesus told the leper who was cured, "Go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded." Jesus in fact established the sacrament of penance, where he requires that the sinner open up his sins to the priest who represents Christ himself.
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