Fr. Rick’s One-Minute Homily for Thursday, 1st Week in Ordinary Time

January 11, 2025, Mark 1:40-45

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011625.cfm

Really? I don’t have to live like this anymore.

“If you wish, you can make me clean.” We may know someone enduring a long illness, and the length and severity of their illness can condition them to a way of life that they don’t even think about getting better.

The disability of the illness becomes routine, even accepted by the person. How many people live in depression for years and never seek help? We may know someone grieving the loss of a loved one, and they are no longer the person we once knew.

The leper in today’s Gospel discovered a profound faith and a unique grace. His utter helplessness and complete reliance on others may have shattered his spirit, but it also opened him to the divine. His plea, “If you wish, you can cure me,” echoes the depths of his soul, ready to kneel in supplication.

Gospel Challenge:

Remember, the grace and faith we seek are present in every broken spirit we encounter. Let us unite in prayer, asking Jesus to reveal his compassion and mercy to those in need. Your prayers and acts of kindness can be the guiding Light in their darkest moments. A simple act of kindness can unlock the treasures of Jesus’ heart, and your compassion can be the catalyst for their healing.

We can all be agents of God’s mercy. Like Jesus, “Will it.”

Love Your Neighbor:

Please join me in praying for all baptized Catholics to be faithful to Jesus in the Holy Mass every weekend. Hail Mary, full of grace…

Mother Mary, “I am yours now and forever. Through you and with you, I always want to belong completely to Jesus.” The Surrender Novena – InHeartland. https://inheartland.com/pages/the-surrender-novena

Peace be with you.

Fr. Rick Pilger, I.C.

pastor@bscchurch.com