Homily on the 28th Sunday after Pentecost.
As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” Lk 17:12-19
In today's Gospel proclamation we read the recount of the ten lepers that were healed by Jesus. However only one returns to give thanks to God for the restoration of his health. A Samaritan man who in those day's were considered to be impure, half-blood inbreeds and were treated horrifically by the Jewish community.
Having stated thus, the other nine men who were supposed true Jews; "a pure blooded people" didn't even have the decency to thank God in the slightest for the miracle they had received. These men like many in the world suffer terribly from a condition called - Me, Myself and I syndrome. A terrible affliction whereby a person believes themselves to be the master of society and everyone else around them are but mere subjects; to be used at their beck and call!
This is the exact reason why the world is in the state that it's in today. War's and conflicts, people in lower classes of society left to rot on the streets, people always trying to outdo one anther or sabotaging the good works of others and the list goes on.
Thus, if humanity is in such a self-obsessed state, then how and where does one find the humility to come to their senses; ridding themselves of the selfish way of life and to live in a state of humility?
The answer is simple, Jesus! However people fear what comes with that. The realization that they have been in actual fact living a life of entitlement and have potentially degraded the lives of others in to process. A realization as such would be enough to send people into crisis mode and totally loose their minds.
Saint Basil the Great wrote: Humility is to deem all humankind better than you, being certain in your heart that you are more sinful than all.
However, when one totally gives themselves to God the Holy Trinity via true faith, He will not only grant them pardon for their wrong doings/failings but will impart peace within their hearts. A peace which many search for but will never find. One can only acquire true peace through Jesus Christ our Lord in the greatest gifts He left us - the Mysteries of Holy Mother Church. Where through these mysteries we receive true spiritual healing, true physical healing and full communion with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit!
Furthermore, this isn't to say that we are to pray everything away, for God will not wave a magic wand and make everything better, it does not work that way. One needs to firstly will for a change to take place. Work on it by changing certain lifestyle choices, then add prayer into the mix. This must be done in order for the prayer and the intention to come into affect. It's exactly like faith without good works is dead James 2:18-26 or vice versa; the same principle applies.
Therefore, when Jesus taught us that we are to become like children in order to enter the Kingdom of heaven, Mt 18:3-4 He was referring to the humility of a child, the love of a child, the sincerity of a child the innocence of a child. These things are all achievable even for the hardest and baddest of bad boys so to speak. Jesus assured us only have faith and you can move mountains! Mt 17:20
In addition, the healing of the other nine lepers also shows us that the love of God stretches past the ends of the earth. The Lord granted healing although He (Jesus) already knew that the nine would not return to give thanks. This is all the proof one needs to see that God loves All of mankind no matter who they are or where they have come from in life.
God is the definition of perfection and we have been created in His image. Unfortunately, we render ourselves imperfect via our selfishness and disobedience to God. He (God) does not create rubbish we wallow in it and in turn become rubbish. However, Jesus came to lift us out of the rubbish; washing us with divine hyssop in order to be rendered pure in Him the source of all purity!
Thus, time and time again we hear the greatest gift we can give to one another is the gift of ourselves. In doing so we are not only making someone feel like a valued person and extending God's love to them through our action, but we are fulfilling the commandment to love your neighbour as yourself! Mk 12:31
In addition, when we pray for others we ask the communion of saints to be with the person. We implore their guardian angel to protect them and our prayer also imparts a spiritual shield of protection for them. Sometimes we forget how powerful prayer truly is. We forget that miracles take place when we pray. The impossible is made possible!
Having stated thus, if we encounter or know of a person who could use a little humility in their lives let us pray for them so the too may come to see that life is so much more than themselves.
In conclusion, although the prayer of Saint Ephraim is a Lenten prayer, I tend to use it time to time because it's a beautiful prayer and I encourage anyone to also pray it if they feel the need to. O Lord and Master of my life, take from me a spirit of despondency, sloth, love of money, and idle talk. But give to me, your servant, a spirit of sober-mindedness, humility, patience, and love. Yes, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sins and not to judge my brother, since you are blessed to the ages. Amen.
Through the prayers of the Holy Theotokos, Lord Jesus Christ our God have mercy on us and save us.
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