A BREATHE OF FRESH AIR

I was in the company of my friend Reuben, whilst walking and listening to the new Rabbi from Nazareth, called Jesus. Yesterday I followed him to Simon of Zebedee’s house; to visit his mother-in-law. She was suffering from what we call ‘hot fever’. And Jesus cured her right away, with no incantations and burning of animal parts, as the other Rabbis do. So, as expected, I made it a point to follow Jesus again, today. Because something inside tells me that He is so different and special, He can preach love and sow mercy … which we so much lack in our society.

We were quite a crowd, listening attentively to His teachings. All of a sudden everybody panicked; we dispersed and ran away, including myself, I don’t know why. Jesus was left alone. We did not realise what was happening then. But word quickly spread around that a leper went close to Jesus. Other Rabbis would have sent the leper away and shouted at him. But not this Jesus.

When He saw the leper kneeling down before Him, and imploring Him, Jesus was moved to pity, to the depths of His being. Something extraordinary happened, Jesus stretched out His hands and touched him. Jesus actually touched the leper! I have seen it with my own eyes! Something unheard of! Can anyone imagine this? I would not touch him for anything in the world. These lepers usually have to keep a certain distance from other people, ring a bell and shout out, ‘Leper, leper’. Their’s is a very contagious disease.

But, notwithstanding anything, Jesus touched him and a great miracle happened. I was witness to the miracle myself. All of a sudden the great crowd went hysterical, everyone shouting, ‘A miracle, a miracle. The leper is cured’. But then I noticed that the man’s skin looked like that of a new-born man. This Jesus must be the Messiah, I feel it inside me. From a plagued man with leprosy the man is now completely cleansed. Thank God for His mercy.

Something curious happened, following his cure. Jesus told the man, and He was quite strict with him; He asked him not to say anything about his cure. I can’t understand this, not even those present, could not make sense out of it. Why should not the cured man talk about his great healing, and who was responsible for it? But He must have a reason behind it. What a difference from the other Rabbis we are used to.

Had they performed such a miracle, which they never did, they would have gone to the Temple bragging about it and praising the Lord with a great throng around them, making a show of themselves. They would have offered some gold coins for charity, throwing them from high up to make a lot of noise in the silver dish of the offerings. But Jesus insisted that he cured man should not say anything.

I suppose the healed man went to show himself to the priest, according to the law, and make an offering. But he did take some time to arrive because he stopped everyone he met along the way to proclaim what Jesus had done to him. The word soon spread around. It was the talk of the day. But what happened was that Jesus could not go anywhere because great crowds used to follow Him everywhere. So He had to stay outside in the lonely places. But just the same the people kept coming to Him.

Coming to think of it, Jesus could have driven the leper away because by approaching him, the leper was breaking the law, but to the contrary He spoke to him gently, and with love. He met his needs with understanding and compassion. To Jesus, the man was not unclean, he was a human soul in desperate need. Another thing, Jesus did not defy our cultural conventions; our laws and customs, on the contrary He submitted to them.

This Jesus, is a Rabbi of compassion, of power and of great wisdom. He must be the promised Messiah.

Ben Jehuda