Whatsoever You Do (Lev 19:1-2; 11-18 and Mt. 25: 31-46)

A former student of mine speaks regularly in one on my classes about persons with disabilities. In her talk, she often gives my students tips for dealing with these persons with disabilities. She says, for example, that when talking to a blind person, make sure to inform them when you will leave them otherwise, they might find themselves talking to thin air.

Today's first reading contains a verse which condemn acts against disabled persons. God says, "You shall not curse the deaf, or put a stumbling block in front of the blind." Putting it another way, don't be cruel to persons with disabilities and don't take advantage of their disabilities.

And deafness or blindness here could also be metaphorical. People might be deaf because they don't understand the subtext of what you're saying. They might not be inculturated. Or they might be deaf because you are talking behind their backs. Or people might be blind because they are not familiar with their surroundings or situations. One can also take advantage of such information asymmetries. 

And the Gospel for today completes the warning. While the deaf person or the blind person might not know what's going on, God does. And God knows what is going on because he is the deaf person and the blind person and he is the person who is disadvantaged in society.