Twenty Eighth Sunday October 09. 2022
2 Kings 5:14-17; 2 Timothy 2:8-13; Luke 17:11-19
Harry Ironside, the great American Bible teacher, went into
a crowded restaurant to have a meal. Just as he was about to begin his meal, a
man approached and asked if he could join him. Ironside invited him to have a
seat. Then, as was his custom, Ironside bowed his head in prayer. When he
opened his eyes, the other man asked, “Do you have a headache?” Ironside
replied, “No, I don’t.” The man continued, “Is something wrong with your food?”
Ironside replied, “No, I was simply thanking God as I always do before I eat.”
The man said, “Oh, you're one of those, are you? Well, I want you to know that
I never give thanks. I earn my money by the sweat of my brow and I don’t have
to give thanks to anybody when I eat. I just start right in!” Ironside said,
“Yes, you're just like my dog. That’s what he does too!”
There are many people in our society today who are just like
Ironside’s dog. Such people believe they have earned every good that comes
their way and, therefore, do not need to thank anyone or any God for it. They
forget that the blessings that come into our lives are God’s blessings before
they become our achievements. What did anyone do to merit being born alive
while some people were born dead or were even aborted? What did you do to
deserve loving parents while many people never had any? What did you do to have
eyes to see, ears to hear, tongue to speak, feet to walk, that some people
among us do not have? How much did you pay God to make you such an intelligent
and beautiful person? Think of the many wonderful teachers, friends and
relations that you have had and that you still have. We take our blessings for
granted. Emerson once said that if the stars came out only once a year,
everybody would stay up all night to behold them. We have seen the stars so
often that we don’t bother to look at them anymore. How easily we grow
accustomed to our blessings and forget to give thanks for them.
No story in the gospel shows so emphatically the ingratitude
of human persons. The ten lepers were gradually healed on the way and one of
them the moment he realized that he was healed, realized that Jesus had healed
him and returns to him before going to the priests to fulfil the obligation. He
came and prostrated before Jesus, a sign of deepest respect and honour. Jesus
expressed his surprise that the other nine did not come back to him to express
their gratitude. "Were not all ten
made clean? The other nine, where are they? It seems that no one has come back
to give praise to God, except this foreigner".
The word of God today tells us that we all need to be
grateful to God every day of our lives for the graces and good gifts we have
received in and through him. He has not only given us our life with all its
joys and sorrows, but he has prepared us for a future life of joy and
happiness. We often fail to acknowledge
the good he has done to us. What is needed in our life is the recognition of
the good and the acknowledgment of gratitude towards God and all persons who
come to us as instruments of God.
We all are aware that we have been the recipients of gifts
from God. In our life of faith an
attitude of gratitude, that is to be thankful to God for everything he sends is
essential and is a key to praying effectively. Our gratitude and words of
thanks are indeed simple ways of showing appreciation for what we possess and
all the blessings we have received. But the expression of gratitude is like all
the other blessings must come from the depth of our hearts.
Why didn't the nine lepers return? Here are some suggested
reasons:
One said, “I think we need to wait and see if the cure is
for real, if it would last.”
One said, “Besides, there’s plenty of time to see Jesus
later, if we need to.”
One said, “You know what: Maybe we never even had leprosy in
the first place.”
One said, “There was no doubt in my mind that we would get
well someday.”
One said, “I told you guys that if you think positively that
you will be well, you will?”
One said, “Jesus didn't really do anything special; any
rabbi could have done it.”
One said, “Now that we are okay, we do still need him?”
One said, “What we need now is the temple priest, the one
who can declare us clean.”
One said, “Jesus said to go to the priest. He would be mad
with us if we return to him now.”
It is said, that only the thankful are truly happy. Brother
David Steindl-Rast, founder of the global ‘Gratefulness’ movement, writes that
‘The root of joy is gratefulness...It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is
gratitude that makes us joyful.’
Gratitude is key to Ignatian spiritualty. The traditional
first step of the ‘examen’, the end-of-the-day prayer that St. Ignatius Loyola
told Jesuits never to omit from their day, is to recall with thankfulness every
good thing that happened during the day.
The Jesuit writer Tony de Mello used to say that you cannot
be grateful and unhappy. There is so much to be grateful for, and we need to
remind ourselves of this from time to time. In the great joy at their cure, the
other nine lepers forgot the greater joy that they were the recipients of this
wonderful yet unearned gift. Let me spend some time counting my blessings and being
grateful for them.
Jesus tells the Samaritan, 'Your faith has made you well'. I
thank God for the gift of faith, which makes me more capable of facing life
with all its suffering and contradictions. I ask the Lord Jesus to strengthen
my faith.
Happy Sunday
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