division, disgust, and kissing the leper

"Forgiveness flounders because I exclude the enemy from the community of humans and myself from the community of sinners."
Miroslav Volf

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, "If you are willing, you can make me clean." Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!"
Mark 1:40-41

The midterm elections were this week. Another chance to participate in democracy. Another chance for lies, villainization, and polarization to seep into our hearts. It seems the only way people know how to distance themselves from their opponents in the modern world is to create a kind of cultural disgust.

Disgust for others’ ethics.

Disgust for others’ positions.

Disgust for others’ views.

Disgust for others’ lifestyles.

Disgust for others themselves.

This political spirit has made its way down into our hearts. If we are not careful, we will hold people in contempt that God has made in his image. Instead of seeing beauty in the humanity of others, we will feel disgust at our differences. Disgust is toxic and oh-so prevalent. Think about what you hear on a typical day:

"Woke people disgust me."

"Christian nationalists disgust me."

"The LGBTQ community disgusts me."

"White heteronormative people disgust me."

"People who voted for Trump disgust me."

"The radical left disgusts me."

"Capitalistic greed disgusts me."

"Lazy people disgust me."

Jonathan Haidt unpacks the idea of disgust in his book The Righteous Mindexplaining that many of the issues we have moralized that cause us disgust are culturally conditioned. They can be religious convictions, but they can also be sociological and personal preferences. These preferences are easily manipulated and prayed upon by others for their own advantage. We are often unaware of how our sense of disgust is cultivated by outside forces and weaponized against others. Very little of this is thought through or discerned through a biblical and theological lens.

The Pharisees operated with a kind of cultural disgust.

Disgust for sinners, disgust for tax collectors, disgust for Gentiles, disgust for the Romans. The kingdom of God was hindered by self-righteous disgust.

Enter Jesus.

Where others saw disgust, he saw people. He didn’t see issues to avoid but people to love. He operated outside the cultural categories of his day and focused on building a kingdom of love. His ministry was defined by dignity, recognition, the removal of shame, and the empowering of others. His chosen disciples included those who were at war culturally, yet he gave them a transcendent identity that did away with cultural disgust and replaced it with category-defying love. He still calls his disciples to do this today.

KISSING CHRIST

St. Francis of Assisi had a fear and disgust of lepers in his day. He was repulsed by them and afraid of the disease. One day, while riding his horse near Assisi, he saw a man suffering from leprosy on the side of the road. Though he was repulsed by the man, he got off his horse and kissed the leper out of compassion. The leper held out his hand needing money, and Francis gave him what he asked for.

When he got back on his horse and turned to face the man, he was gone. There was no trace of him on the road. Francis was shaken. For him, this was a kind of theophany. He believed it was a test, the kind mentioned in Matthew 25:46. For Francis, it was Christ himself he had kissed. He was transformed by this encounter, finding Christ among those for whom he previously felt disgust. Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss. Francis found him with one.

Though I am not so naive to believe deep cultural differences don’t have their place, I do believe we can move toward those considered our enemies with goodwill and love. We can show kindness and dignity to those whose views, lifestyles, and convictions we oppose and risk contamination with that which we fear.

We need men willing to love like this today. Men free from the confines of secular categories and willing to do the impossible. To kiss the lepers of our world, to move towards those who disgust us, to find Christ amongst those we cannot stand.

For this is the way of Jesus.

We were the spiritual leper whose sin disgusted the holiness of God. We were the leper with our hand held out in need. And Christ left the throne of heaven and came to us. He touched our sin, brokenness, and exclusion with mercy and love. We are the sinners seated at the table of grace.

Who represents the leper for you?

Who is in front of you that you tend to recoil from?

Where can you lower yourself to meet their need out of compassion and obedience to Christ?

What does it mean to kiss the leper? 

A kiss is a sign of intimacy and proximity.

How can you move towards those you may have dismissed this week out of obedience and reconciling love?

Who is my leper? What is my kiss?

Carry these questions with you this week.

For you too may in fact kiss the face of Christ.

Thanks for taking the time to read.

Cheers.

Jon.