I found myself in a used bookstore the other day and came across a book by Brad Jersak called, Kissing the Leper. What a wonderful find! I have another book by Brad and I always find his work stretching; you know, he really makes you question your own comforts. Brad works and lives among broken people, or should I say, visibly broken people. He spends time with the lowly. Being someone who is not part of the visibly broken (meaning, that ’clean’ segment of our society that has mastered the art of keeping our brokenness covered, quiet, or managed), I find Brad’s words to be a potent tonic – waking me out of my safe slumber. I spoke about his book, Kissing the Leper, this Sunday at church. It is fantastic and would recommend it to you!
This blog is called “A Fresh Focus.” I called it that because I am always looking to see the world through Jesus’ eyes. As my journey carries on, I am beginning to wonder if Jesus-glasses are found in the most unlikely places. Brad has taken me to those unlikely places through his writing and has offered me new lenses. For that, I say, “Thank-You, Brad!”
Here are some thoughts from Brad Jersak’s website about the book:
Jesus once counseled us to “Buy medicine for your eyes from me so you can see, really see” (Rev. 3:18 MSG). Kissing the Leper is about getting our eyes repaired from religious and cultural prejudice so that we can see Jesus in others, especially those that our world discards as “the least.” The author has compiled the voices and testimonies of historical and contemporary practitioners to develop a devotional theology of encounter. Specifically, he challenges us to meet and welcome Christ in human form from the society’s margins to the banqueting table of God.
Eugene Peterson says – “Brad Jersak’s book is a gathering of field notes on Jesus-sightings among the disabled, the children, the prodigals, and the poor. He has a practiced and discerning eye and ear for bringing Jesus to notice among “the least of these” among whom Jesus is present to be fed and welcomed and clothed and cared for and visited . This is first-hand witness, a freshly articulated documentary, on Jesus’ story of the sheep and goats (Matthew 25)–with an emphasis on the sheep who served Jesus when they didn’t know they were serving him.”
If you would like to get a copy, I would suggest ordering from Brad’s website here, or from my Amazon bookstore here. Either way, I hope you can get a copy for yourself!
