Servant of the Word: Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catechism Links[1]

CCC 1503-1505, 2616: Christ the healer

CCC 543-550, 1151: signs of the Kingdom of God

CCC 224, 2637-2638: thanksgiving

CCC 1010: the Christian meaning of death

Jesus Heals the Ten Lepers, Caspar Luken, 1700

Readings for the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time[2]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible[3]

Commentary:

Reading 1: 2 Kings 5:14-17

Commentary on 2 Kgs 5:14-17

The story of Naaman, a military leader from the kingdom of Aram who is afflicted with leprosy, prefigures the baptismal bath that washes us clean from sin, and places the Holy Spirit within us. (The use of the number “7,” the Hebrew number of perfection or completeness, indicates Naaman was completely cured and cleansed.)

Naaman experiences this conversion of heart in the Jordan, a muddy river (hence the reference to the mountain springs of Damascus), but cleansing to the spirit. “Finally, learn the lesson provided by the book of Kings. Naaman was a Syrian, and a leper, and there was no one who could cure him […]; he bathed and, finding he was cured, he realized immediately that it was not the water that cured him but the gift of God. He doubted prior to being cured; but you, who are already cured, should not have any doubts" (St Ambrose, De mysteriis, 12, 19).”[5]

Naaman takes two mule loads of dirt from Israel, so he can erect an altar on Israelite soil in his home country, that he might worship the God of Israel. While he recognizes that God is ruler of all the earth, he also sees that Israel has a special place in his eyes.

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 98:1, 2-3, 3-4

R. (cf. 2b) The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.

Commentary on Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4

Psalm 98 is a song of praise and thanksgiving. We see in this selection how God is praised for the strength he lends his people, and the salvation he brings to those who are faithful.

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Reading II: 2 Timothy 2:8-13

Commentary on 2 Tm 2:8-13

In the first line of this passage, St. Paul reminds St. Timothy that Christ came fulfilling the prophecy that the Messiah would come from the line of King David. The rhythmic language used would seem to indicate this section is part of an early Christian hymn. As Paul states, this is not an easy path, and Christians must endure trials. “’If we have died with him we shall also live with him;’ is not only mystical death in baptism (see Romans 6:3-11) but also refers to physical persecution (see 1 Corinthians 15:31; 2 Corinthians 4:8-11) also ‘…martyrdom makes the disciple like his master, who willingly accepted death for the salvation of the world, and through it he is conformed to him by the shedding of blood’ (‘Lumen Gentium’, 42).”[6] He concludes with the promise that those who remain faithful will receive the reward, but those who fall away will not be recognized by the Lord on the last day.

CCC: 2 Tm 2:8 437; 2 Tm 2:11-13 2641

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Gospel: Luke 17:11-19

Commentary on Lk 17:11-19

The story of the Samaritan leper, found only in St. Luke’s Gospel, reiterates Jesus’ ability to remove sins. Here the Lord cures ten lepers, outcasts, who are viewed by the community as being under God’s punishment. The Gospel is an indictment of the Hebrews who did not recognize Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus’ comment: “Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” is a clear indication that this lack of faith will have consequences. This is especially true when he follows this statement with: “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” This would seem to imply that those who refuse to accept Jesus’ status as the Christ would not receive God's salvation.

“This incident recounting the thankfulness of the cleansed Samaritan leper is narrated only in Luke's gospel and provides an instance of Jesus holding up a non-Jew as an example to his Jewish contemporaries (cf Luke 10:33 where a similar purpose is achieved in the story of the good Samaritan). Moreover, it is the faith in Jesus manifested by the foreigner that has brought him salvation (Luke 17:19; cf the similar relationship between faith and salvation in Luke 7:50; 8:48, 50).”[7]

CCC: Lk 17:14 586; Lk 17:19-31 2463

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Homily:

The story of the Ten Lepers is a story that has a number of lessons to teach us. It teaches us, for instance, that, at the time Jesus walked among us, the Jews believed they alone could claim God as their father. Presumably, the nine lepers who left without accepting the miracle of healing were Hebrew (since Jesus identified the one who came back to give him homage as a “foreigner”).

The story also teaches us that through Christ we are united; washed clean and adopted by God. It was his act of healing that allowed all ten of the lepers to return to their people; they were no longer outcasts. Just as Naaman was consecrated to God as he was healed in the Jordan, so we are all united in the baptismal bath.

There is a third lesson to be found in this story. It is provided by the Lord’s example.

I want to tell you a story to illustrate this lesson, and for those of you who know me well, let me just say this is a true story not just one created to make a point. Four years ago, a group of parishioners collected clothes for underprivileged children at a school down in Mississippi. The clothes, school supplies, and garden tools were donated by generous parishioners, St. Vincent De Paul, members of the Christian Family Movement, and families of St. Thomas School children. The organizers made the long trek down (1600 miles round trip) in a rented U-Haul truck and delivered the clothing to these children.

It needs to be pointed out that the school to which this aid was given was not a Catholic organization. Rather it was one that claimed the “non-denominational” Christian focus. The people who delivered the aid were welcomed by members of the staff and treated with respect and hospitality. However, when the time came for public recognition by the head of the community, no mention of their actions was made, nor was any credit given to the organizers or the faith community of St. Thomas, that were the benefactors.

Do you think that the ones who did not receive recognition for their acts of charity responded the way Jesus did to the nine lepers who did not come back? I tell you they did. The truly grateful members of that community were the children and those directly responsible for them. The heartfelt gratitude and the outpouring of love from those to whom the gifts were given washed away all feelings of being slighted. Those who should have been holding this action up as an example of the lived faith were like the nine ungrateful lepers who went to show themselves to the rabbis as required by law.

The parishioners that had worked and sacrificed to bring the clothing to those needy kids rejoiced as they came back. The ones they had gone to help had been helped in the Lord’s name.

Now we ask a second question. Do you think those responsible for the effort will do it again? They were, after all, not held up as servants of Christ in front of the whole school and community by the leaders there. Do you think they will feel slighted because of this and be reluctant to do the work again?

Did Christ stop bringing the good news because those in authority rejected the Gospel? Did Jesus turn his back upon the people of his day because the Scribes and Pharisees did not accept his authority? That is one of the lessons of the Ten Lepers. Jesus did not cure them because he wanted their adoration or their homage. He did so for his father’s greater glory.

There is an epilogue to this story. Since that first trip this entire effort has been repeated twice more. Since that first trip, the leaders of the school have come to realize and gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the organizers and the St. Thomas faith community. They have done so publicly and in writing which, while not the motivating factor for the Christians who do this work of charity, is gratifying to all who have helped.

So it must be with us. When we reach out to those in need, we must do so without expecting gratitude for ourselves. All the good that we do is accomplished only through God’s grace. It is he who made us and gave us the gifts we share. So when we offer what we have to others and do not get an immediate “Gee, thanks,” our thought should be one of gratitude to the Lord, for it was only by his grace that we had what we offered.

One final lesson we must not forget as we conclude our consideration of those Ten Lepers. We are like them. We too have become unclean at times, having become separated from our Heavenly Father. It is his outstretched hand of love and compassion that invites us back through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. As we consider those ungrateful lepers, let us ask ourselves how many times we smugly walked away from the confessional thinking, “now I’m clean,” without giving heartfelt thanks to the Lord. How many times have we thought: “Lord, I’m sorry for having sinned, but only say the word and I shall be healed,” without the profound gratitude of that Samaritan leper?

The story of the Ten Lepers gives us much to think about as we strive to follow the way the Lord directs us. As we walk forward today, we ask ourselves do I walk with the Lord or with the nine ungrateful lepers?

Pax

In other years on this date:

Optional Memorial for Saint Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and His Companions, Martyrs

Optional Memorial for Saint John Leonardi, Priest

[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, Published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014

[2] The picture used is Jesus Heals the Ten Lepers, Caspar Luken, 1700

[3] S.S. Commemoratio