28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes
I want to highlight two lessons from this Sunday’s Gospel which could greatly bless your life and soul. When ten lepers meet Jesus at the edge of a village, they keep a respectful distance from him. (Their skin disease made them religiously unclean and people feared them as being contagious.) The lepers shout out: “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” Jesus sees them and tells them, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” (The Old Covenant had a ritual for declaring lepers clean involving a physical inspection by a priest and a sacrifice.)
So the ten depart as they are commanded to by Christ and as they are going their skin diseases are cleansed. Notice how the lepers were not cleansed right away—they were not healed the moment Jesus spoke to them. They were going when they were healed, maybe miles away from Jesus when it happened. In this miracle, they were healed while walking in obedience.
Many blessings in our faith are only experienced once we step out in obedience. First we do what Jesus asks of us, in response to his grace which goes before and follows after us, and then we see its fruits in our lives. As you read this list of examples, which one or two are meant for you to add into your life?
• Daily prayer
• Consistent Sunday Mass-going
• Keeping Sunday rest
• Generous tithing
• Forgiving enemies
• Staying sober
• Volunteering
• Practicing chastity
• Being open to life
• Living more simply
• Regular confession
• Eucharistic adoration
• Going on a spiritual retreat or pilgrimage
• Entering a seminary, convent, or monastery
• Attending weekday Mass
• Praying the Rosary
Embracing one or two of these according to God’s will shall bless you and your loved ones. This Sunday’s Gospel story also suggests another valuable lesson.
One of those ten lepers happens to be a Samaritan, and once he realizes he has been healed, he goes back to Jesus. Glorifying God in a loud voice, he falls at Jesus’ feet and thanks him. Jesus says in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he tells the newly cured man, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”
Jesus informs us that all ten lepers were cured. But consider this: eventually, each of those lepers died. Even if it was many years later from some cause of death other than a skin disease, every one of them died. Their healings were a great thing, but not the most important thing. The Samaritan’s healing produced in him great gratitude toward Jesus Christ and God the Father. He eventually lost the gift of good health, but his relationship with God could endure forever.
Some people only pray to God when they need something. But for Christ to fix our problems without us engaging in deeper relationship and gratitude towards him profits us little. Do not be one of those who are locked outside the door to whom the Master of the House will say, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.” It is good for us to say, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us,” like the ten lepers did. But let us always remember gratitude and relationship with the Giver of all good gifts.
Parishable Items 