Spiritual Leprosy

Let's review some of what we learned from the last post:

• There are some differences between the modern definition and the biblical, though there is much overlap. Most instances in the Bible refers to a variety of infectious skin diseases. 
• Hansen's Disease is what is considered by some the modern equivalent and is still a major health problem in many parts of the world. Many think it is a disease of the skin but it is actually more accurately classified as a nervous system disease as the bacteria actually attacks the nerves. 
• Symptoms start in the skin and peripheral nervous system but spread to other parts of the body. It can cause tumor-like growths called lepromas on the skin and respiratory tract and the optic nerve may deteriorate. These changes in the nerves cause damage to pain receptors can lead to a total loss of physical pain.
• It does not kill, but neither does it seem to end. Instead, it lingers for years.  
• The Law of Moses required lepers to be quarantined. They were considered unclean. The mere touch of a leper brought uncleanness, and breathing the same air was believed dangerous. As such, they were cast out of society and dwelt in special places or colonies in the wilderness. Lepers could not come within  cubits of any Israelite, even more if a wind was blowing. There were also strict rules for ceremonial cleansing. 

Most Jews of Biblical times considered leprosy a mark of spiritual uncleanness. For the sake of the metaphor, let's just call it sin. So sin is a neurodegenerative disease- it leads to loss of feeling and potentially loss of vision. In lepers, the loss of pain receptors can cause catastrophic injuries since they can't feel when they have been injured- they could hold their hand in a fire and not realize it because their body can't signal them anymore. Lepers would often lose a finger or toes because they didn't realize they were cut or infected or frozen. 

Sin likewise blocks our signaling channels- the Holy Ghost, our spiritual neurons. As we sin and remove ourselves from his influence, it becomes harder and harder to recognize when something isn't right. Many people think pain is a bad thing. While I agree that it isn't fun, it's absolutely necessary. The body uses pain to alert us to problems- like a smoke alarm. It lets us know which actions are safe and which shouldn't be repeated. 

Similarly, spiritual pain alerts us to what is good and what shouldn't be repeated. When we feel guilty, it is our spirit telling us that it shouldn't be repeated. It doesn't mean that we're a bad person to feel guilty, it's really a great thing- it means our spiritual neurons are working and if we pay attention to those feelings and act on them, not only can we avoid future feelings of guilt (which no one enjoys!) but we'll also move in the right direction, toward becoming more like Jesus Christ. 

When we feel guilt but don't act on those feelings, rather continue in sin, leprosy begins to erode our pain receptors. We don't like feeling guilty so we start to block it out, we push those feelings and the Spirit away so we can feel better. Little by little we lose the ability to feel and the risk of damage shoots up. We could be doing things we know isn't good for us, sticking our hand in a fire, but we don't feel it so we keep going. 

But there is hope! Throughout his earthly ministry Jesus healed lepers, and although he no longer walks the road of Palestine he still reaches out his hand to heal. We don't have to go through the same rigorous cleansing process as in ancient days, but there is a way to rid ourselves of the stain and pain of sin if we will humble ourselves and come to the Savior in repentance.