THEOLOGY

Socio-Political Perspective of Mark 1: 40-45: Application On A Lower French Community

Socio-Political Perspective of Mark 1: 40-45: Application On A Lower French Community

Introduction

The Gospel of Mark is the second Gospel in the New Testament. This Gospel has sixteen chapters and has different themes such as the death of Jesus, Jesus as a teacher, discipleship and Jesus as the Son of God. Other than these themes, “messianic secret” of Jesus Christ is also a central theme of this gospel. The gospel of Mark has recorded more miracles of Jesus than any other gospel. His divinity is proved in Mark by presentation of his miracles (Mathew, n.d., pp. 47-64). For this biblical study, Jesus' miracle of healing the lepers will be studied in relation to the lower French community.

Being leprous meant to be completely disconnected from the society and they quickly became isolated from the rest of their community. People used to avoid them and were not even allowed to enter their own village or even homes. They were thought to be unclean and ugly and the only way to be socially accepted was if priest declared them cleansed. Though the leprosy is now strictly considered as an imported disease in France, but there is another disease which becomes the source of discrimination against its victims and that is HIV/AIDS. The practices that were common against leprous people are also carried out against patients of HIV/AIDS. In France, 150,000 people are living with HIV and 50,000 people are infected with the virus without knowing or without medical supervision.

The affected lower class community living in Guiana, France is facing challenges which need to be addressed through the biblical readings of the gospel of Mark. Whether to get a job, a home, to be insured or sometimes only for travel abroad, people with HIV are often treated "special". A strong figure that is perhaps the best indicator of what is now their greatest sufferings: relationship problems, fear of rejection and loneliness, especially. On the physical level, patients are better. But a psychological point of view, the problems remain.

Methodology Outline

Gathering in a church on Sunday

Starting the activity with pray and reading Mark 1:40-45.

Explaining the verses.

Thinking over it individually, and

Group discussion about its implications

The Chosen Text

The chosen text for this biblical study is the “cleansing of the leper” which is described in Mark 1: 40-45. The healing of the leper is programmatic ministry of Jesus. More than in healing in this chapter, we are witnessing the creation of a dramatic confrontation between Jesus and deadly force, embodied not only by the different forms of disease, but the stigma they are subjected in the Jewish religion (Donahue, 2005, pp. 88-92). Confrontation with evil, breaking the rules of purity that crush the human and the cut of his community, Jesus chose the path that led him to the cross, which in turn will become unclean.

In this Jesus presents a leper to ask healing, purification. At the time, many called leprosy ...