Reflection/Homily: Twenty-Eight (28th) Sunday in Ordinary Time of the Year C (13th Oct. 2013)

Reflection/Homily: Twenty-Eight (28th) Sunday in Ordinary Time of the Year C (13th Oct. 2013)

Theme: The Church, the Sacraments of Healing and the Power of Gratitude

Every act of healing is an opportunity God uses to reveal Himself to humanity. In most cases, He intervenes with ordinary words and actions which produce extraordinary effects. The story of Naaman’s healing through the Prophet Elisha in the first reading (2 Kings 5:14-17) explains this better. Naaman, a foreigner was made to believe in the God of Israel not through a rational knowledge of God (theology) which he was taught but through an experiential knowledge of the healing power of God. The story of Naaman represents the various stories of our encounter with God in our quest for healing, whether spiritual or physical. We often run helter-skelter, ready to explore all available options in desperate need of one favour or the other. But most often, we do not return like Naaman to give thanks to God.

In the Gospel reading (Luke 17:11-19), Jesus asks “were not all ten healed? Where are the other nine?” Through this, he expresses the fact that God actually looks forward to receiving our gratitude for favours received. Like Naaman, the leper mentioned in the gospel reading did not only express his gratitude with words, he went further to express a deeper level of conviction in Jesus. Trying to find ourselves represented in the characters presented to us, where do we fall? Are we represented in Naaman and the Samaritan leper who returned to give thanks or are we represented in the “other nine” who perhaps thought Jesus was simply doing what he is known for?

Reflection/Homily: Fifth (5th) Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B (February 5 2012)

At one moment or the other in our lives, life may have been very unbearable for us because of the miserable conditions we find ourselves in. Sometimes, it could be as a result of vocation crises, medical problem that the doctors cannot help, or an emotional problem or a spiritual or financial difficulty or even a family problem. At such moments, we regret our coming into the world. We then begin to look around for solutions to our problems, sometimes, with myopic eyes and not even being able to meet those who can help us.

Such was the condition Job found himself in the first reading. His problem was psychological, physical, emotional, financial and whatever you can imagine. Job was certain he didn’t offend God but wondered why he was in such a horrible condition. He lost the hope of rising again and caused everything about him. He eventually realized it was only God who created him could rescue him. Often times, we find ourselves in such conditions and we begin by blaming God instead of going to him for healing.

The gospel reading of today teaches us what best to do when we are challenged by difficult situations. Peter had to invite Jesus to heal his mother-in-law when she was terribly sick because of the faith