2 Kings 5:1-3, 7-15c Wash and be clean
Luke 17:11-19 And he was a Samaritan
Untouchables:
To some of us that word may remind us of a television show we watched when we were kids about Elliott Ness and Al Capone. Or a movie of the same name in 1987.
To others it may remind us of the horrible problems experienced by the Dalits, the untouchable, lowest of castes in India and all of the indignities they have experienced. Even though it is officially illegal to discriminate against them.
When we are working, they ask us not to come near them. At tea canteens, they have separate tea tumblers and they make us clean them ourselves and make us put the dishes away ourselves. We cannot enter temples. We cannot use upper-caste water taps. We have to go one kilometer away to get water... When we ask for our rights from the government, the municipality officials threaten to fire us. So we don’t say anything. This is what happens to people who demand their rights.
— A Dalit manual scavenger, Ahmedabad district, GujaratTo others among us this word may remind us of our own history in the United States when black people could not use the same rest rooms as whites, but could nurse white people’s babies. Or signs hung outside windows: "No Irish need apply." Or Japanese Americans who were sent to concentration camps in World War II while German Americans were not. Or even now when a child with AIDS is shunned from a school.
Today in our Bible readings we have heard two stories about "untouchables." They were untouchable in two ways:
1. They were foreigners.
2. They had leprosy. In that time leprosy was even more dreaded than AIDS is today.
Leprosy was the most dreaded of all ancient diseases. It ate away at the body and left its victim maimed and disfigured. There was no known cure. In their hopes for a family life, a useful occupation, plans for the future-they were dead men. Their situation was made worse because leprosy was believed to be highly contagious.
In our Old Testament Lesson a Syrian army commander, Naaman, comes down with the dreaded disease of leprosy ----- or as it is sometimes called, Hansen’s Disease. In spite of the hate between his people and the people of Israel, he went to the Israelite prophet Elisha and was healed.
In our New Testament Lesson Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. He encounters Ten Lepers. They keep their distance, as they are commanded to do. Jesus heals them. They go to show themselves to the priests, but one of them is so grateful that he comes back to Jesus and kisses Jesus’ feet. He is a foreigner. A Samaritan. So the Bible tells us.
What do we see here?
Elisha and Jesus touch the untouchable.
The untouchables reach back in thanks.
What do we experience and learn here? What are our blessings and challenges?
1. The God we worship is not afraid to reach in and out. God is not the God of one people, but of all people. And God will reach beyond our boundaries, expand our borders, and challenge us to join in this loving without limits.
2. The challenge for us is to also "touch the untouchable." This may mean getting out of our "comfort zone" and relating to people with whom we do not feel at ease. This is one reason we take our Confirmation class on the Urban Immersion experience. Eating in a so called "soup kitchen" is a growing experience.
I think of the challenge that each of us has to reach out in our own community. In a simple way this may mean connecting with the sick and the elderly. Some of you have told me how uncomfortable you feel going into a nursing home. It can be a difficult experience. The sights, sounds, and smells are not always pleasant. But the blessings are very pleasant ---- as we see a smile and receive a touch, and know we are appreciated.
3. The other challenge we receive in these stories is the challenge of thankfulness. Sometimes we can take life for granted. When our bodies work that’s fine, but when they don’t then we realize how thankful we should be just to be able to move a finger.
In this political season we can get annoyed. Perhaps you have gotten tired of the negative political ads. Maybe you watched the debates and wondered about those presidential and vice presidential candidates going at it tooth and nail. It does seem unnecessarily contentious.
But then I was surprised by the comment our guest from Uganda made after watching the first presidential debate. "Bush and Kerry hugging one another! That would never happen in my country! The politicians would want to kill one another!"
Well. We know that even if John Kerry and George Bush don’t exactly call one another bosom buddies, in the end they will respect one another and whoever wins on November 2nd will receive the genuine good wishes of the loser, and neither one will be concerned about his physical safety ----- at least from his opponent.
This brings me to a sense of thankfulness that I live in a country with a democratic tradition. But I am also thankful for the richness I have experienced in other countries and the genuine love I have experienced among the people in places like Swaziland, Ghana, Switzerland ---- and, yes, Neillsville.
Today as I hear these two Bible stories I am grateful for the God who touches the untouchable, and now I want to offer God my thanks. I hope to do that in our prayers today, when I participate in our quarterly meeting after worship, when I make visits this week, and when I fill out my "Intention of Giving" card on Consecration Sunday in November.
How will you give thanks?
