VATICAN - Pope at the Angelus mentions that “we might see in leprosy a symbol of sin, which is the true impurity of heart, distancing us from God” and to rediscover the “value and importance” of the Sacrament of Confession

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “We might see in leprosy a symbol of sin, which is the true impurity of heart, distancing us from God. It is not, in effect, physical malady that distances us from him, as the ancient norms supposed, but sin, the spiritual and moral evil.” This was what was said by the Holy Father Benedict XVI prior to the recitation of the Angelus on Sunday, February 15, reflecting on the Gospel from the Mass, which told of Jesus curing the leper (cf Mk 1:40-45).
The Pope explained that Jesus told the leper “Be clean!” and “according to the ancient Jewish law, leprosy was not only considered a sickness but the gravest form of 'impurity.' It was the duty of the priests to diagnose it and declare the person afflicted with leprosy unclean. This person then had to keep his distance from the community and stay away from towns until he was certified to be healed. Leprosy thus constituted a kind of religious and civil death, and its healing was a kind of resurrection... This miracle thus has powerful symbolic value. Jesus, as Isaiah prophesied, is the servant of the Lord...In his passion he will become like a leper, made impure by our sins, separated from God: He will do all this for love, with the aim of obtaining reconciliation, forgiveness and salvation for us. In the Sacrament of Penance Christ crucified and risen, through his ministers, purifies us with his infinite mercy, restores us to communion with the heavenly Father and our brothers, and makes a gift of his love, joy and peace to us.”
Benedict XVI closed by encouraging everyone to make “frequent recourse to the Sacrament of Confession, the Sacrament of Forgiveness, whose value and importance for our Christian life needs to be rediscovered today.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 16/2/2009)