Mark 1:40-45 Jesus Cures a Leper

A leper came to Him and kneeling down begged him and said, "If you wish, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said to him, "I do will it. Be made clean." The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. Then warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. Then he said to him, "See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them." The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter...

I always felt kind of bad for this guy, thinking he did exactly the opposite of what Jesus said. The end of the passage said there were so many people looking for Jesus that he could not travel openly because people were coming to him from everywhere. It seemed to me as if this cured man blabbed away and prevented the Lord from doing what he was called to do. Today I had another idea. What if this leper did exactly as Jesus ordered. Kept his mouth shut, went to the priest, and preached without words. This was his publication, living a new and clean life.What if the touch of the Lord changed this fellow so much that the love of God burned within him and people recognized it and came to Jesus, in droves. Isn't this what we as Catholics are called to do? Live our Catholicism publicly in our actions? I can think of two people, both in the medical field, who were doing this. They wore medals, Catholic medals, at work. One medical receptionist had on a miraculous medal , and the other person was a PA and she was wearing a small silver crucifix at the office. I must admit I see crosses as jewelry pretty often, but this may have been the first crucifix I have seen in public. I have been to this PA's home and I know she is Catholic because of a comment she made to someone about her Catholic wedding. Well, she also had an Advent wreath on her dining room table. There may be other Christian faiths that use the wreath, but I only know it because it is part of my Catholic heritage. I wear medas often. I wear the scapular all the time, but it is hidden beneath my clothes. Because of the public  display of faith these women have shown, I think I will have the courage to wear my faith more visibly.