Daily Reflection for Thursday, January 16, 2020
Peace and Blessings, Friends and Parishioners,
We encourage you to reflect on Thursday's readings at this link: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/011620.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: 1 Samuel 4:1-11
Responsorial: Psalm 44:10-11, 14-15, 24-25
Gospel: Mark 1:40-45
Our reflection on Thursday’s readings:
”Moved with pity…” Mark 1:41
My emotions always stir whenever I read scripture that describes Jesus expressing empathy, compassion, and any other kind of emotion. Today we read that Jesus is moved with pity as He is confronted by a leper begging to make him clean. In many ways, we are limited to knowing the many times that Jesus must have expressed an empathic emotion.
Scripture tells us that Jesus preached that taking care of the stranger, the poor, the prisoner and the hungry was important to our own salvation. Jesus heard and saw first-hand the many injustices the people around him faced. He called the community to take care of them by responding to their needs and working for justice. He was very clear--taking care of others and working for justice continue to be basic tenets of our faith today. I imagine in His lifetime, Jesus was moved with pity often in order to hold this belief with such strong divine conviction.
Jesus, moved with pity, cleaned the leper. By His example, He calls us to be moved with pity by the injustices suffered by our brothers and sisters so that we too can contribute to washing away these injustices. To be moved with pity, not to enable others but to empower ourselves and others to live with dignity and love for each other. The leper begged to be made clean, and Jesus was moved with pity.
May Jesus be moved with pity as we pray for mercy and work for justice,
Margarita Solis Deal