10-7-22 - Well and Whole

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here. 

“Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well,” Jesus says to the Samaritan cured of leprosy.The phrase “made you well” also means “saved you.” The healing of our bodies and healing of our spirits is a package deal with God. We can choose to open ourselves to the deeper healing of our spirits, the eternal healing – or stop at wellness in the here and now.

All ten men were healed of leprosy; nine returned to their “here and now” lives. Something made this one come back to seek a connection with the Holy One, to throw himself at Jesus’ feet and say thank you. He receives a deeper healing, as Jesus proclaims him whole in body, mind and spirit.

Is it his faith or Jesus’ word or a combination that made him well? That is mystery. The faith we bring is certainly a large part of the equation, more than I wish it were. Wouldn't it be simpler if it were all up to God? Yet God seems to work through us, to have us be conduits of God’s power and love, as we invite it to flow through us in faith, for ourselves, for each other, for the world. We can’t do it without God; God won’t do it without us.

Faith is the doorway to transformation. As we allow God’s love to flow through us, we also are healed and drawn closer. Jesus is always inviting us into a deeper relationship with God - not just assent to beliefs, or participation in the life of a religious community, but participation in the life of God. That’s where we get the “holes in our soul” filled, and find meaning and purpose beyond our own lives.

In our story, these two men from different ways of seeing meet in the zone between their lands. This unnamed Samaritan seeks a relationship with Jesus, the Jew, traveling through. We too can meet Jesus, who is always traveling through our lives. Maybe he’s just outside our comfort zone.

Today, you might offer him your thanks and your worship, and ask him to be more real to you in prayer. It helps to be still, and set some time aside, and be open. Be attentive to any words or images or prompts that you sense. Sometimes it’s just stillness. Sometimes there’s more.

This leper-turned-disciple is a model for us. He is grateful, humble and faithful. And Jesus sends him on his way, whole. As God sees us through Christ, so are we.

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