Daily Reflection Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

Now that the New Year is in full swing, we can enjoy a bit of a respite from the December Donation Discernment decisions -- the difficult task of choosing among competing and compelling goods from the charitable solicitations that flooded our mailboxes, emails, and airways. My prayer from those days: that our reluctant 'no' to so many requests would ultimately be overshadowed by others' generous 'yes.' One plea amidst the flurry caught my attention and has stayed with me -- the motto "Send Love to the Rescue" from Shriners Children's Hospitals.

Sending love to the rescue... what a powerful way to describe God's in-breaking in our world that we have just celebrated at Christmas. What a way to capture the mission of Jesus as he now begins his whirlwind public ministry chronicled in the first chapter of Mark, which we close out in our Gospel reading today. With the groundwork prepared by his cousin John, Jesus has been baptized and has been tempted. He has called his first disciples, cured a demoniac and Simon's mother-in-law, and tested out his personal rhythm of ministry and time for renewal. Now a leper, on bended knee, has come to him for healing. It is poignant to see how the leper has recognized Jesus' power to do so but is still uncertain of intent. "If you are willing...," he begins tentatively, and Jesus responds, "I am so willing." Two miracles are launched: Jesus reaches out first to touch the untouchable, and then comes the healing. Love has been sent to the rescue, the seemingly impossible rescue that can overcome barriers of ostracism and isolation.

We can only imagine the potency of this touch and healing, a story recounted in all three of the Synoptic Gospels. No wonder the cured man disobeys Jesus' admonition to tell no one. Joy of this magnificent cannot be constrained or contained. It is 'pressed down, overflowing.' Its cup runneth over. It needs no sophisticated social media ad campaign for the telling -- only the sharing of the miraculous restoration of healing and the wholeness that comes from fellowship in the human family.

A new slogan caught my January attention -- this time during an in-person visit to Staples, with "Ask Me What is Possible" emblazoned on each employee's T-shirt. We heard that the cured man "spread the word abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly." Perhaps our prayer for the New Year would be to ask God for what is possible when we commit to sending love to the rescue. A miracle or two might be on the horizon.