28TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR C)

1st Reading             2 Kings 5:14-17

Psalm                       98:1,2-3ab, 3cd-4 (R. cf.2)

R:// "The Lord has shown his deliverance to the nations"

2nd Reading          2 Timothy 2:8-13

Gospel                     Luke 17:11-19

AVOID THE LEPROSY OF INGRATITUDE

Peace and Goodness, friends! Today is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), and the 2nd Sunday of October. Our first reading is from 2 Kings 5:14-17 and the Gospel is from Luke 17:11-19. For this Sunday, I suggest we pay particular attention to the Gospel from Luke.

The first reading and the Gospel harmonize in talking about the issue of leprosy. Let us understand that leprosy, as described in Scripture, is not leprosy as we know it today. Leprosy in Scripture is any scar, wound, defect, or disorder, on the body, animal, or cloth. What happens is that leprosy of that kind leads to social and religious separation. 

In today's Gospel, Luke, a physician, tells us one of Jesus' healing events. He heals 10 lepers who cried out to him. Unfortunately, only one returned to thank Him. Let us consider three details from the story for our reflection. These details tell us that there are other leprosies that need healing.

The first detail the author tells us is that Jesus is travelling to Jerusalem and passed through Samaria. The author fuses in a significant detail that we cannot gloss over it. The problem is that there is a SOCIAL SCAR. The Samaritans and the Jews are not on good terms. By walking through Samaria, he intends to heal that scar. This is Jesus going to Jerusalem to die. Before he goes, that brotherly and family wound should be healed. His ministry transcends all human differences and indifferences. 

In fact, the social scar is even evident in the distancing of the lepers. Thus, "they stood at a distance from him and lifted up their voices" (Lk. 17:12b). His presence healed that scar, that wound. Some wounds we suffer are social. They are brotherly and family infractions. Like Jesus, our presence should heal all kinds of social wounds, all social leprosies. 

The second detail is that Jesus said to the 10 lepers: "Go and show yourselves to the priests". By way of the social scar and isolation, they also face a religious scar. Their interaction with God in the Temple is thwarted. They cannot enter the Temple. Jesus tells them to show themselves to the priests. The priests confirm whether a person is healed or not. The text did not tell us whether they arrived or not, but they were cleansed as they went. Only one returned to thank Jesus. I want to think and suggest that if the other 9 had reached the priests' residence or the Temple, the author might let us know. Maybe they did not arrive. Even if they did, only one returned. The wound that Jesus healed is union with God. He restored them, and that is another thing that we need to do for others with leprosy — to return them to the Lord. There are those who are estranged from God and lost hope. 

The third detail, stemming from the second, is that there is a dangerous kind of scar, wound, or disorder that we can acquire when care is not taken. That kind of wound is the wound of ingratitude. While the author intends to tell us that Jesus restored them socially and religiously, the other 9 lepers acquired another leprosy — ingratitude. Ingratitude is a scar that can destroy our relationship with God and fellow humans. An ungrateful person is also a leper.

That is the wound that Naaman did not want to acquire. A wound of ingratitude is more dangerous than any other wound. 

Pax et Bonum