Let us be care givers

Fr. JC Rapadas, SVD
Mar 15, 2020
5 min read

In our Gospel for today Jesus speaks about the story of the healing of Naaman the Syrian by the man of God Elisha at the Jordan River. Naaman was in charged with the King of Aram, and he was a leprose.

His being a leprose was never an issue with the Arameans. It was only the little girl from Israel, who later became the maid-servant of the Wife of Naaman from the raid of the City that his being a leprose was brought up and made a great deal of an issue.

This little girl has a significant role to play in the healing of Naaman. In fact at the very time that she recommended to see the “man of God” in Israel for him to be healed, she was a care-giver and a health worker for someone she doesn’t know, and might have actually be to whom she has grudge on because of Aramean’s invasion of Israel. But that little Israelite girl acted as a health worker to Naaman, recommending him to go and see Elisha, the man of God.

Notice the gentleness of the way she was introduced:“If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria,”she said to her mistress, “he would cure him of his leprosy.” It was a suggestion to which Naaman heeded and went off to see and try.

The conqueror-and-the-conquered relationship or the master-servant relationship they previously had has been changed totally to the relationship of care, and non-judgmental. The unadulterated and sheer care of the little girl was enough to move the commander of an army to relent and believe.

Today, as we combat the Corona Virus which is rising in number, rising drastically in our country, let us imitate the virtue of the “little girl” who showed care and non-judgmental, unconcerned of differences and of risks she served and cared. Her sincere concern lead to the profession of faith of Naaman: “Now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel.” Apart from the healing of the leprosy of Naaman, the little girl’s gift is to Naaman is faith. While Naaman thirsted for healing, he was satisfied with healing and faith.

In moments like these, we honor and remember to our prayers the health workers who are putting their safety on the line of duty, those who are at the frontlines in the battle against Corona Virus: the doctors, the nurses, the scientists, the Barangay health workers, and the hospital staff around the world. They are our defense and protection from being contaminated. They are like the “little girl” who offered healing and faith to Naaman. And for us, they offer healing and faith to our fears and in the midst of our fears.

There can be no better way to honor the health workers than to become care-givers to our family members, our confreres, our community as we are quarantined inside our homes and communities. Take care of one another so that they would have less concerns to think about. Be the “little girl” who cares and unites. Lastly, there can no better way of remembering their sacrifices than to pray for them in this Holy Eucharist.

We pray for one another.

We take care for one another.

Let us be care-givers to one another.

READINGS

🟪 FIRST READING

2 Kgs 5:1-15ab

Naaman, the army commander of the king of Aram,

was highly esteemed and respected by his master,

for through him the LORD had brought victory to Aram.

But valiant as he was, the man was a leper.

Now the Arameans had captured in a raid on the land of Israel

a little girl, who became the servant of Naaman’s wife.

“If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria,”

she said to her mistress, “he would cure him of his leprosy.”

Naaman went and told his lord

just what the slave girl from the land of Israel had said.

“Go,” said the king of Aram.

“I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.”

So Naaman set out, taking along ten silver talents,

six thousand gold pieces, and ten festal garments.

To the king of Israel he brought the letter, which read:

“With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you,

that you may cure him of his leprosy.”

When he read the letter,

the king of Israel tore his garments and exclaimed:

“Am I a god with power over life and death,

that this man should send someone to me to be cured of leprosy?

Take note! You can see he is only looking for a quarrel with me!”

When Elisha, the man of God,

heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments,

he sent word to the king:

“Why have you torn your garments?

Let him come to me and find out

that there is a prophet in Israel.”

Naaman came with his horses and chariots

and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house.

The prophet sent him the message:

“Go and wash seven times in the Jordan,

and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean.”

But Naaman went away angry, saying,

“I thought that he would surely come out and stand there

to invoke the LORD his God,

and would move his hand over the spot,

and thus cure the leprosy.

Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar,

better than all the waters of Israel?

Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?”

With this, he turned about in anger and left.

But his servants came up and reasoned with him.

“My father,” they said,

“if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary,

would you not have done it?

All the more now, since he said to you,

‘Wash and be clean,’ should you do as he said.”

So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times

at the word of the man of God.

His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

He returned with his whole retinue to the man of God.

On his arrival he stood before him and said,

“Now I know that there is no God in all the earth,

except in Israel.”