| Wednesday, November 12, 2003 Meditation Luke 17:11-19 Children have a game they play, called “Opposite Day.” On Opposite Day, everything that is said must be interpreted as the exact opposite. Stop means go; up means down; run means walk; and work means play. After reading about the ten lepers, we might think that Jesus was playing Opposite Day as well. He worked this miracle of healing in a way opposite to what we usually picture.
For instance, in the story of the paralytic who was let down through the roof (Luke 5:17-26), Jesus saw the faith of the paralytic’s friends and told the man, “Your sins are forgiven.” It wasn’t until after he sensed that charges of blasphemy were rising up against him that he healed the man physically. But today’s reading is just the opposite. First, he healed the men’s leprosy and then he told the one former leper who returned to thank him, “Your faith has made you well” (Luke 17:19), indicating the spiritual healing of forgiveness and salvation.
As shocking as it sounds, nine of those who were healed did not return to thank Jesus. We don’t know any more about these nine, but we can assume that such lack of consideration kept them from being “made well” on the spiritual level. By not going back to Jesus, they missed out on the greater healing. While it’s true that Jesus wants to heal us physically, he is just as interested—if not more so—in our spiritual healing. Ultimately, all ten of these people died, and their mortal bodies decayed. Yet, we know that at least one of them was lifted up to heaven because he was “made well.”
In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we encounter Jesus’ power to remove our sins and to tell us, “Your faith has made you well.” Our part is easy. We simply need to go to him and ask for forgiveness and then try to sin no more. Jesus does the rest. He forgives, he heals, he mends our relationship with him. Jesus makes us well. If he can do so much, how can we not do the little bit required of us?
“Jesus, I believe that by virtue of your authority as Son of God, you have the power to forgive us our sins. Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, I confess my sins and I ask you to make me well.” |
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