2Kgs. 5:14-17; Ps. 98: 1-4; 2 Tim. 2:8-13; Lk. 17:11-19

“Your faith has saved you”. In the gospel today ten lepers are healed but only one return to give thanks. Healing came to all ten but salvation came to only the leper who returns to give thanks to God. Leprosy was thought of as a punishment from God worthy for the sin of the person. Naaman also is washed clean of his leprosy but only after his obedience to plunge himself into the Jordan seven times. The Jordan is the river Jesus is baptized in, not for any sin of his but to sanctify the waters to bring us salvation by baptism. Baptism the first of seven sacraments we receive for our sanctification. The story of Naaman prefigures the baptism of the Lord and the coming to perfection the washing clean of our sins.

The story of Naaman is also a beautiful story of conversion. His cleansing from leprosy did not save him, this was the visible sign of invisible grace from God. Naaman returns to Elisha, the man of God to give thanks to the god of Elisha and vows “I will no longer offer holocaust or sacrifice to any other god except to the Lord”. He didn’t simply acknowledge the God of Israel, he called him “Lord”, a conversion of faith saved him. The sign of conversion is to persevere in our faith and die with him as our Lord and savior. Many saintly souls as the hour of death approaches experience a dryness of faith, a final test summed up in the words of Jesus on the cross, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me”. It is the final opportunity for the serpent of evil to strike at the soul before it can never approach it again. How are we to prepare ourselves for that hour by perseverance.

“In all circumstances give thanks for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” What is the meaning when we say “Alleluia”? It is a two-word translation of “Hallel” and “Jah” meaning “Praise the Lord”. We use Alleluia as an exultation of praise but it is also a command to praise the Lord. We are to give thanks and praise him always, in good times and in bad, sickness and health. “Hallel” in Hebrew means joyous praise in song. In fact, the more we sing the Mass the greater the praise of God. The Mass is a celebration of thanksgiving. The intent is that we boast in God our savior. The dialogue of the Mass is to be praiseworthy. The gospel is announced, “THE LORD BE WITH YOU” spoken boldly with the response “And also with you” just as boldly, not timidly or “ho hum” going through the motions.

It is not easy to constantly be joyous. I would propose that it is almost impossible if our attention is ego-centric. Joy is not an indulgence from having more of our pleasures met. Joy is a conscious awareness of the love and mercy of God present in our lives. Our joy then leads to gratitude, the attitude of being ready to accept the will of God in thanksgiving. In thanksgiving we are open to a spirit of praise. We have a choice, either to focus on the negative and be drawn into pity or on the blessings and be raised up in joyful praise. We teach our children to say “thank you” when they receive a gift. Who benefits more the gift giver or the child by saying “thank you”? The child gains more by learning to be grateful and thankful. We are the child of God. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; thanksgiving changes us not him.

A contemporary philosopher, Tristan Garcia (The Life Intense A Modern Obsession) speaks of our current human condition as in search of greater intensity of life “that might justify our lives”. This is the opposite of the complacency of life. This thrill-seeking behavior is pervasive from energy drinks, drug use, and roller coaster rides not just in theme parks but in relationships for maximum intensification of pleasures, love, emotions, communication and consumption. It seeks an escape from the discipline of life, from perseverance desiring for the “maximizations of our entire being…an intoxication of our sensation.” We are in “search, not for transcendence, as those of other epochs and cultures were, but for intensification”, we want more indulgence.

Transcendence is to know, love and serve God. It is recognizing his presence in every moment and desiring to do his will at that moment. Saint Teresa of Calcutta said her desire was to be a pencil in God’s hand. Saint Therese the Little Flower found her purpose and missionary calling in “always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love” in other words do the next right thing with love for holiness. In those moments of weakness when our struggle of faith is tested, the road less traveled back to our faith is the path of thanksgiving. God desires our greatest good and he knows the desires of our heart so let us trust in his goodness at all times especially in moments of darkness with a spirit of thanksgiving.

One of the dangers in adopting a life in search of a greater intensity is the disappointment from any obsessive behavior, there is no fulfillment, no joy, only emptiness of the soul. The nirvana we created in our minds is an illusion waiting to fall apart. For our youth this leads to anxiety, depression, and suicide. This is in part why we see a rise in mental health issues among our youth and it is increasing in younger children. We go to restaurants and observe families sitting together and each child is so well behaved absorbed with their electronic device. We observe television and each 1.5 seconds the image changes even if it is only from a different camera angle. When is the last time we just sat and contemplated a still image, a work of art, nature? How about sitting and contemplating Jesus on the cross or in Holy Hour for adoration? Here lies our joy and our peace.

Do you feel alive or in a rut? The great experience of living does not come from the egocentricity of overstimulation. It is a transcendent love from God in the Trinity. Turn to the love of God and experience the joy and peace he offers us. In return come to the house of the Lord in praise and thanksgiving to receive his salvation. If today you hear his voice, give praise and thanksgiving. In the morning when we rise, give praise and thanksgiving for all the day may bring before we live it by faith that it may guide us to salvation. Our faith will save us.

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1 Jas. 5: 9-12; Mk. 10: 1-12

The readings and responsorial for this day link three themes: perseverance, mercy, and truth in marriage. “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No”. It reminds me of another common saying “say what you mean and mean what you say”. The God of truth isn’t interested in excuses, his word is truth and he who seeks truth is consecrated to Him. The issue of marriage and divorce is a “hot” debate in the church under Pope Francis. Pope Francis has encouraged the church in mercy to review applications for annulment with greater efficiency and expediency so couples can receive the sacraments. In the last few years there is the debate of whether a divorced person remarried can receive communion. The church recognizes today’s gospel as a sign of “No”. It is an adulterous relationship.

Why do Pharisees in the gospel event ask the question? They know the laws of the temple and Jesus lets them answer their own question, it is “Yes”. They were testing Jesus in defense of all their laws to accuse him if he dared to claim otherwise. “Because of the hardness of your hearts” God allows Moses to make for special circumstances. The fact they ask the question indicates the possibility this allowance was abused, a simple way out of marriage for convenience, a sin before God. Jesus provides the perfect truth.

Recall the story in scripture of the woman who marries seven brothers and each dies on their wedding night. Whose wife will she be is asked of Jesus. His response is that in heaven there is no marriage, our joy will be God. We live in times where divorce is more common that fidelity to a marriage and perseverance to our commitment is not a virtue of value but an inconvenience. A divorce person however can still receive the sacraments. The sin is in remarriage without annulment of the first marriage. Annulment recognizes that the first marriage is invalid opening the door to remarriage in view of the circumstances.

Pope Francis in “Amoris Laetitia” opened the dialogue for remarried couples to receive communion reaffirming the Catholic teaching on the “primacy of conscience”. The CCC 1790 states “individuals are obligated to follow their conscience” but the church recognizes it must be an informed conscience by church teaching or risk falling into moral relativism. Recently in a letter to the Argentine bishops in Buenos Aires he declared his letter as “authentic magisterium” which means “official teaching” of the church. In the letter he provides “guidelines” on handling divorce and remarried Catholics. In the guidelines he asserts “that in certain circumstances, a person who is divorced and remarried and is living in an active sexual partnership might not be responsible or culpable for the mortal sin of adultery. The guidelines add that “Amoris Laetitia” opens up the possibility of access to the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist.” The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium states the faithful are instructed to give a “religious submission of mind and will” to teachings that are authentic magisterium though the teaching may not be an infallible “declaration on faith and morals” (National Review, Tyler Arnold, 12.12.17, 5:00 p.m.) Thus the debate in need of truth and reconciliation.

Jesus says to the disciples after the resurrection “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven and whose sins you retain are retained” (Jn. 20:23). The church is given great authority for right judgement of truth but also for mercy. The Holy Father who stresses dialogue has begun a very important one in an age of high divorce rates. Why is it so high? There is no one answer. One thing I have seen in my years as a counselor is that couples don’t know their spouse. The reason is not always a lack of attention, especially in the beginning when everything is done “together”. To know the other, the other must know themselves and share who they are as a person, not just justify their behavior as “this is who I am”. Confusion and misunderstanding comes from a lack of deeper sense of awareness of who God created us to be and living it out. If we now ourselves as a child of God we grow in maturity, secure in who we are and able to be open about our inner self. The reality is we are in continuous growth and development in every stage of life and every stage has its unique challenges of life.

In conclusion I share a story of my parents. One day while visiting my mother she shared she did not know what else to do with my father. He had become so difficult to live with and her tolerance had reached a climax. Knowing some of what she was referring to understanding the circumstances of their situation, and the power to change rested in him not her. I said simply, “Mother that is your cross to bear.” She would often remind me of what I had said to her that day and it seemed that it allowed her to place it in perspective of a spiritual sacrifice she could bear finding meaning in her struggle in marriage. Our first reading reminds us of the need for perseverance, “In good times and in bad” all for the glory of God.

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