Sunday Readings

By Msgr. William Carr
Isaiah 43:18-19, 21-22, 24-25; Psalm 41; II Corinthians 1:18-22; and Mark 2:1-12
The Hebrew word “Halak” means “to walk.” An authentic collection of ways to keep the Torah or Law of Moses was called the “Halakkah” or “the Way of Walking.” A person who walked in God’s ways was a righteous person; a person who did not walk in them was a sinner. This background is the basis for today’s cure of the paralyzed man. He could not walk. In sign, then, he was a sinner! Jesus tells him, “Your sins are forgiven.” In sign, this means, “Now you can walk the way of the Lord!” When questioned by the Pharisees, Jesus says, “Which is easier: For me to say “Walk the ways of the Lord” or to say “Stand up and walk?” It is a miracle based on a play on words. The man is healed spiritually and physically.
The first reading, from Isaiah, tells us not to hang on to the guilt of the past. Let it go. God is merciful; he does something new in forgiving your sins.
The second reading tells us to be persons of our word. What others see must be the genuine me. Our yes must mean yes, and our no must mean no.
Many people think that their sins are too great even for God to forgive. Many are plagued by guilt and are weighed down by the past. The Lord tells us that we can “let it go,” because he lets it go: He annihilates our sins by his merciful forgiveness. Once we are forgiven, let us be persons of absolute integrity: our yes meaning yes, and our no, no. Do not restrict the mercy of the Lord.

By Msgr. William Carr
Leviticus 13:1-2,44-46; Psalm 32; I Corinthians 10:31-11:1; Mark 1:40-45.
Biblical leprosy was not usually Hansen’s Disease. The term leprosy was applied to any highly contagious and awful looking skin disease, such as ringworm, scabies, impetigo, and so on.
From experience, people knew that these diseases were contagious. Therefore they isolated a person until he was cured. The isolation may seem very cruel to us, but we must remember that they did not know how to cure these diseases, and they didn’t want anyone to be infected. There was a very elaborate ritual for declaring a “leper” cleansed; this may be found in Leviticus 14.
The gospel tells of Jesus’ cure of a leper. He stretched out his hand and touched him! This was forbidden by the Torah for obvious reasons. But Jesus has such compassion that he not only uses words to cure; he touches the afflicted man.
In Mark’s gospel, Jesus does not want people to get the wrong idea of his messiahship; therefore he tells those he has cured to “keep it quiet.” Unfortunately the cleansed leper shouts it to the roof tops. People press and crowd Jesus; he can scarcely move about freely.
The Church sees “sin” as the spiritual leprosy. Only Jesus can cure us. And he can cure us only if we want to be cleansed. Nowadays, too many people deny their leprosy. They act as if there is no sin; they deny that the Church has a right to teach on what is sin. If we would be cured, we must first admit our problem; then humbly approach the Lord.

By Msgr. William Carr
Job 7:1-4,6-7; I Corinthians 9:16-19,22-23; and Mark 1:29-39.
In the first reading, Job laments that our lives are drudgery. The nights drag on; the day brings no relief. Job, of course, knew nothing of the Paschal Mystery. He knew nothing of offering his agony in union with Christ for the salvation of the world. He knew nothing of eternal happiness which awaits the good and faithful servant.
Even Jesus, in today’s gospel, experiences the drudgery of life. In Mark’s gospel, as we have often noted, Jesus always seems to be pushed, shoved, hemmed in, pressed upon, and crowded. He wants to get away, but they track him down. They almost hound him, even when he is trying to pray. His vocation is to proclaim good news to all the neighboring villages, but they won’t let him go.
The second reading is Paul’s apologia: He is “compelled” to preach the gospel. If he does not, he is ruined. But in preaching the gospel, he experienced misunderstanding and opposition. People questioned his motives. Yet he tries to become all things to all people in order to save all.
Most of us do not have a full time vocation of preaching. On the other hand, we are all called to perfection. We are called, according to our state in life, to spread “good news.” We need some time outs and some space to realize this is so. We need to realize that even our ordinary work is of precious value when offered in union with Christ. Let us try for a spiritual retreat. At least, let us set aside a few moments of quiet time each day to “be still and know that God is God.”

By Msgr. William Carr
Jonah 3:1-10; I Corinthians 7:29-31; Mark 1:14-20.
A common thread in each of Sunday’s Scripture readings is: “The time is short!” Therefore, we should change our ways and live for the Lord.
The first reading is from the parable of Jonah. This book of the bible is an extended parable — a fictional story with a spectacular ending used to teach a religious lesson. God tells Jonah to go to Nineveh to announce its destruction. Jonah, like all good Jews, hated the monstrous Ninevites; he did not want to warn them; he thought their destruction was good riddance. He tried to escape aboard a ship; a storm came up; Jonah says that he was the cause. He is thrown overboard, swallowed by a great fish, and for three days has a chance to reconsider going to Nineveh! Our reading takes up from here. Much to Jonah’s surprise, when he announces Nineveh’s destruction, the pagans repent!
In the second reading, Paul tells the Corinthians that the time is short. Therefore they should live in this world in expectation of the world to come.
Sunday’s gospel tells a story of the call of the first disciples very different from last Sunday’s account. Jesus proclaims that the time of fulfillment is at hand; the reign of God is here; therefore everyone should repent. Very likely the first disciples left their homes and work in expectation that the end was coming.
What are a few short years on earth compared to eternity? In our present attitude, we might consider that the end is far away. But time has a way of speeding by geometric increments! We should live each day as if it is our last. We should always ask ourselves, “How does this word or action fit in with my eternal goal?” The time is short; live for the Lord.