8th September Trinity
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| Ten Lepers, James Christensen |
September 13, 2015
Luke 17: 11 – 19
And as he was entering a certain village, ten men who had
leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and they raised their voice, saying
“Master, Jesus, have mercy on us!”
And seeing them he said, “Go, and show yourselves to the
priests.” And it came about that as they went on their way, they were cleansed.
Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed,
turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and fell on his face at his
feet, and thanked him--and he was a Samaritan.
And Jesus responded and said, “Were not all ten cleansed?
And the nine—where are they? Was no one seen returning to praise the revelation
of God’s working in this event except this foreigner?”
And he said to him, “Rise, and go your way. The power of your trust has made you strong.”
8th September Trinity
September 13, 2015
Luke 17: 11 – 19
Leprosy is a disease that is obvious to everyone, for it
sits on the surface. And because of contagion, the lepers of Jesus’ time were
sent away from their religious and social community.
In our time, it may be that we suffer from a kind of inner
leprosy. It may be that our souls show a certain deformation, obvious to all –
a deep and abiding anger, or an irresponsible flightiness, or an excessive
degree of self-preoccupation. Or as one wisdom teacher puts it, Certainty can
become an illness that creates hate and greed.[1] Aware of it in us, others are
unable to maintain community with us, and we feel isolated.
The first step is to become aware of our inner illness. And
then we can ask Christ, the Master Human Being, to help us. And like the lepers
in the story, he will send us back to our religious community, to show that we
are aware of our flaws and are working to change them. For the ills can only
persist when we are unaware.
But before anything else, the true source of our soul
healing lies the strength of our trust, and results in expressing gratitude, in
a loud voice, and with deep humility. Thanks to our community for our awareness
of soul sickness. Thanks to God for his merciful attention to our need for help
in overcoming the sickness of sin. Thanks to our angel for progress made on the
way back into the community of those who are aware of the health-giving power
of Christ. As the poet John O’Donohue
says,
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| Leper Healed, Adriaen Collaert |
May you use this illness
As a lantern to illuminate
The new qualities that will
emerge in you.
May your fragile harvesting of
this slow light
Help to release whatever has
become false in you.
May you trust this light to
clear a path
Through all the fog of old
unease and anxiety…[2]
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[1]
“Certainty” Tukaram in Love Poems From God: Twelve Sacred Voices
from the East and West, versions by Daniel Ladinsky
[2]“
A Blessing for a Friend on the Arrival of Illness”, John O’Donohue, in To Bless the Space between Us, p. 60
