6TH SUNDAY HOMILY: ORDINARY TIME – YEAR B
6TH SUNDAY HOMILY: ORDINARY TIME – YEAR B
THEME: HEALTH INTELLIGENCE
BY: Fr Andrew Ekpenyong
1. Over 95% of the World is Sick. For a total of 13 years (1990 to 2013), chronic diseases and injuries were tracked in 188 countries and published in the Lancet, as the Global Burden of Disease Study, 2013 (GBD 2013). It was found that just one in 20 people worldwide or 4.3% of world population, had no health problems. The headlines were depressing: “A sick world: more than 95% of us are ill”; “Over 95% of people have at least one health problem”. What should we do? The researchers wrote: “Without this health intelligence, large, preventable causes of health loss in populations…have thus far not received the attention that they deserve….” Sisters and Brothers, today’s readings provide us with health intelligence that goes beyond physical, mental, and behavioral health. We thank God for His Word to us and for the Church. How wonderful that today, we celebrate the 32nd World Day of the Sick. Pope St John Paul II established World Day of the Sick since 1992, “to draw attention to the sick and their caregivers and highlight the redemptive value of human suffering”. Pope Francis’ message for today’s World Day of the Sick, is contained in its title: “It is not good that man should be alone: Healing the Sick by Healing Relationships.” He takes us back to the Word of God as our fundamental guide. Based on Genesis 2:18, he reminds us: “Brothers and sisters, the first form of care needed in any illness is compassionate and loving closeness.” Yet, today’s 1st reading (Lv 13:1-2, 44-46) calls for the isolation of lepers. Why this apparent contradiction?
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2. Closeness and Isolation. During the exodus from Egypt to Canaan, hygiene was very important for the Israelites as they journeyed through the desert, camping in tents with increased danger of devastating epidemics. Prevention was far better than cure. Medicine was not yet a profession as we know it and so it was practical to have priests as enforcers of preventive quarantine/isolation: Lev 13:46 “As long as the disease lasts, he must be unclean; and therefore, he must live apart: he must live outside the camp.” This is public health intelligence. This isolation to protect the larger community, also sowed the seed for the establishment of places of special care, which later became hospitals. It was isolation for special care and not abandonment. In today’s Gospel reading (Mk 1:40-45), the leper provides us with personal health intelligence. That leper teaches us how to stay within God’s will, while seeking healing. “If it is your will, you can make me clean.” Wow. Hence, no one is allowed to seek cures that break God’s commandments in the process. Healthcare must be ethical. Our Lord Jesus Christ answered the leper’s humble prayer by giving instant healing. Our Lord enjoined him to go, show himself to the priest as prescribed in today’s first reading, so as to be certified ritually clean, no longer medically contagious. He was fit to join his family, and so on. Thus, our Lord promoted public health by sending the leper to local priests for confirmation so that the cured leper was safely reintegrated into society. Our Lord commanded us to heal the sick, to care for the sick (Mt 10:8; Mt 25:36). Thanks be to God, Christians have always taken the care of the sick as a major part of discipleship. For instance, the Catholic Church is currently the largest non-government provider of health care services in the world, with about 18,000 clinics, 16,000 homes for the elderly and those with special needs, and 5,500 hospitals, 65% of them located in developing countries!
3. Health and Salvation. God’s work of saving us through Jesus Christ is a continuation of God’s gift of life and God’s provision of the necessities for nourishing such life: food, clothing, shelter, education, health, etc, directly or indirectly. Sisters and Brothers, as we worship today, let us pray more for the sick and their caregivers. Let us pray like the leper, since many of us are also sick. As we return to our homes, farms, offices, schools, laboratories, hospitals and other places of work during the week, let us continue to cooperate with God in providing basic human needs such as food and healthcare. Today’s 2nd reading gives us another health intelligence principle: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God” (1 Cor 10:31-11:1). Whoever eats/drinks for God’s glory, eats/drinks healthy. May our work, our words and actions promote both our personal health and public health, to God’s glory. In particular, may we increasingly discover more healthy food sources and better remedies against diseases while awaiting God’s ultimate remedy: eternal salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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