By The Rev. Bernard W. Poppe, RectorIn the Gospel we just read, Jesus told the leper who returned, "Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well."
There are a lot of healing stories in the whole Bible and they number extremely high in the Gospels. The dimensions of healing are deep and wide and stories like this provide us with a backdrop to study and learn some of those dimensions. This particular story is one I like very much and quote from often in my conversations on healing.
As often happens, Luke introduces a story by saying that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. For the writer of Luke this is constantly important, it is the prism through which he sees Jesus ministry. Going to Jerusalem and all the events we now reenact liturgically through our Holy Week services. The healing and miracles Jesus performs on his way to Jerusalem are a preview and a foretaste of the ultimate healing and miracle yet to happen through the crucifixion and resurrection. By telling us again that Jesus was on his way, Luke ties this story into the larger story that is unfolding. The participants are of course unaware of what's coming, but for the writer and the generations of readers who know the outcome, the prism through which Luke sees Jesus' life, becomes the prism through which we see also. The injuries to body and spirit endured on Calvary are healed through God's ultimate healing grace and even death is not possible to God as seen in the resurrection. As readers who know this, we come to the story of the ten lepers a little more informed of the larger picture.
These ten people suffering from leprosy were careful to keep their distance as a sign of respect but also not to offend. There was the possibility of contagion and even beyond that the knowledge that as a Jew Jesus would have been obliged to avoid them as unclean. So they voiced their desperate pleas from a distance. Observing the law that only a Jewish priest could certify them as clean and able to be restored to the community, Jesus instructed them to go find the priest. The healing occurred along the way. Miraculous. Nine of them continued on, presumably to find the priest, be certified as healed and clean and find new lives as healthy people healed in body and healed in relationship by being welcomed back from the exile of their disease and banishment.
Yet for one of them there was unfinished business. Once he realized that he had been cured he returned to Jesus to thank him. Quite simply that. For the miracle of cleansing, the miracle of healing, the doors this opened up as far as being reestablished in the community -- there was an overwhelming sense of gratitude, and for this the man returned to Jesus to say thank you. Again, details are important in Luke's story. Jesus noted that of the ten healed, the only one returning to thank him was the Samaritan. We've run into Samaritans before -- the story of the good Samaritan who helped the injured man on the road, the woman at the well Jesus broke the rules to speak to was also a Samaritan, and many other general references to the people of Samaria. They were, as a people, considered foreign and not pure blooded Israelites. They were looked down upon and discriminated against. That Jesus healed the Samaritan leper again showed that he followed the law of compassion rather than the law of prejudice. By referring to this Luke also opens the door to us as readers to expand our vision of those considered worthy of God's love.
Another important part of this story is that they asked. Someone once told me "You don't ask, you don't get." There's a lot of truth in that. We might complain about nothing coming our way, and yet haven't taken the time to ask in any significant way. We may feel we don't deserve something, or that things are simply impossible, and we defeat ourselves by not even asking for that which is life giving and important to us and can be healing. Time and again the miracles come when people ask and God's abundance gives them so much and often more than what was asked for. That's not to say it comes wrapped in paper and recognizable. Sometimes it's subtle and hidden and needs to be revealed. Prayers are answered, but we need to ask.
Then for me the most important part of this passage -- Jesus tells the man that his faith has made him "well." He had already been cured of his leprosy, but the gratitude he showed healed him on an even deeper level. By being called "well," there is implied a spiritual healing of great importance. The Samaritan man didn't take his healing for granted. He acknowledged the source of his healing and deepened his relationship to the great healer with a simple act of gratitude. He did not allow his excitement of being cured allow him to forget this basic lesson of thanksgiving.
Gratitude is easily overlooked. And yet it is so important. Who among us doesn't like to be thanked for something we've done? It's nice to be recognized, gives us a little boost. It means work that we've done has been noticed and appreciated. We have a little glow of satisfaction and there's also some inspiration to do even more. But the gratitude we experience deepens the quality of the relationship we have with the person who thanks us. Part of their spirit reaches out to part of our spirit in a moment of communion. Whether an individual or a group, the act of thanking improves a spiritual bond. A few weeks ago at our celebration of the renovated Parish Hall we thanked many people who worked so hard to make that project happen. It was absolutely important to do that in a significant way that demonstrated the depth of gratitude on behalf of the full community of this church. And it was fun. People who get thanked get all embarrassed and have an "aw shucks" posture, but it still feels good. It draws us closer together as friends and community members.
How much more important it is for us to thank God for the miracles and healing we receive through God's grace and love. Sometimes we get so excited by the positive changes in our lives that we forget to take the time to recognize that God's love makes all things possible and that thanks are deserved. I don't think God's feelings are hurt if we forget to show gratitude, but it's important for us to show it. Taking the time to recognize what we have been given, where we have come along our way, how we've been healed in the many ways from body and spirit gives us an opportunity to be made not only healed, but "well." Recognizing the gift and thanking the giver deepens the relationship between us and God.
Gratitude takes practice. It seems odd to say, but I think it's true. We take so much for granted that we often forget to pause and realize the many blessings we've been given. Even things which appear negative, often turn out to be blessings in disguise. All the more reason to take time to examine our lives and review the many gifts we've been given. When and where appropriate, we should thank the people by whom blessings come. And above all, pause though the days ahead and observe the blessings of God through grace and thank God for them. Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. He told the Samaritan man to "go on your way" wherever that way might go. We each have our own way to travel come what may. It is God that watches over us and heals us in the many ways we need healing, and it is our faith and gratitude that makes us well. Amen.
© 2007 St. George's Episcopal Church, Maplewood, NJ
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