Today’s readings:
Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46
1 Corinthians 10:31 – 11:1
Mark 1:40-45
I went to confession, today. It was seven months since my last one, and I had a lot of sins that needed absolution. I’m grateful to the author of the “Confession: A Roman Catholic” app. I was able to use it to conduct a thorough examination of conscience.
One of the things my confession made me realize was my unhealthy obsession for web development. I was wasting a lot of time, during work hours and late at night, just to learn about web design and SEO. It was taking me away from prayer; I was stealing time away from my employer. Both are sins.
Then God spoke to me from today’s second reading: First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians (10:31 – 11:1) “… whether you eat or drink, whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” So, why not channel my obsession to create a website about my journey with God? I would satisfy my obsession and, at the same time, improve my prayer life and potentially bring the Gospel to others.
So, why not start today? It’s already 1:30am (see how this obsession is affecting me?) But, I can’t stop until I make some progress.
Passages like Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46 cause unbelievers to think God is different than the God of the New Testament. But, He is the same God. So, why did God tell Moses to instruct Jews to treat lepers worse than second-class citizens? I was told during catechism that we cannot understand the Old Testament without the New Testament. So, this apparent callous treatment of lepers cannot be fully understood until we see the connection in the Gospel reading for today, Mark 1:40-45. Jesus will come and redeem all lepers. I get it, but… why did God wait thousands of years? In the meantime, many generations of lepers died in despair. Why didn’t God offer some sort of solace to the lepers? I’ll have to dwell on this problem for a while longer. The Holy Spirit will provide me an answer.
Leprosy is a disease that is obvious to a casual observer. Yet, the sins that disfigure my soul are not so obvious. A leper can’t hide his disfigurement, but I can hide the leprosy of my soul. So, I go to confession to have Jesus cure my spiritual leprosy. The leper in Mark 1:40-45 goes out and tells everyone how Jesus cured him. He is so happy. So grateful. He couldn’t keep Jesus a secret. He had to share with others this miracle: his leprosy is gone!
I’ve been to confession before, but I never saw my sinful condition as a hideous disease of the soul. So, I did not shout from the rooftops or run to every street corner to proclaim the glory of God.
It’s different this time around. I went to confession, today. I started a website. Jesus cured the leprosy of my soul, and I want to tell you about it. Welcome.