26-Nov-15

Gospel LK 17:11-19
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten persons with leprosy met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
“Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
“Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine?
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?”
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.”
Reflection:

"Thanksgiving"

For each of us this past year has been a blending of blessings and sorrows.
Through the grace of God on this day of thanksgiving, bittersweet sorrow loosens its hold on our hearts so we may focus with gratitude on our blessings.
Like the Samaritan in today's gospel, we pause to return to God. We recognize the One who is the source of our strength, the One who soothes our pain and sends those people we need to help us bear the trials of life.

"Faith"

How many times have we watched a friend suffer through the tragedies of life and wondered, "How does anyone cope with these things if they don't have faith?"
Thank you Lord for our many blessings, but most of all, thank you for our gift of Faith. For truly, it is through our faith that we too are healed.
As He did in today's story of the leper who was cleansed, Jesus says to us, "Go, your faith has saved you."

"I have come to the conclusion that the most important element in human life is faith." Rose Kennedy