“Please let me, your servant, have two mule-loads of earth, for I will no longer offer holocaust or sacrifice to any other god except to the Lord.” Did you catch that last line in today’s first reading? What a curious request: two mule-loads of earth. Why would Naaman, who had just been miraculously cured of leprosy, want this pile of dirt? The explanation is really very interesting. Many of the people at that time believed in local gods. They believed that local gods ruled over particular lands. That’s why we hear mention in various Old Testament books of the gods of the Hittites and gods of the Amorites and gods of the Canaanites. Naaman was so taken by the miracle performed for him by the God of the Israelites that he wanted this God to feel at home in Damascus, where Namaan lived. He hoped that, by building a temple to this God of Israel on this soil from Israel that the God would come to reside there. Very interesting, indeed!
Of course, we know that our God is the God of all the universe. He is not limited to one place but is the creator and ruler of all. In a few minutes, we will recite in the Nicene Creed that we believe in one God, maker of all things visible and invisible. It is this God who cured Naaman through the prophet Elisha.
In today’s Gospel, we hear about Jesus encountering a group of men who also had leprosy. Like Naaman, they sought a cure of their disease. They had heard about Jesus and his healing power and hoped that he would heal them. And, as we heard a moment ago, Jesus did heal them. The story of Naaman and these ten men offers a model for each of us in our faith journey, and what it means to be a Christian. Our journey of faith often comes with three important steps. We come to God and his son, Jesus, the Christ, when we are in need. Jesus shows God’s love and care for us and we receive new life. We are then called to respond in gratitude and go out with a new mission: to joyfully share the message of Jesus and the promise of new life to others.
The first step in their faith journey was when the lepers came to God with a need. They were suffering and longing to be freed of their affliction. In their encounter with Elisha, the prophet of God in the case of Naaman, and Jesus, God himself in the flesh, they experienced our merciful God’s blessing on us – the blessing of seeing us and our deepest needs. Throughout the Bible, we see that God is always attentive to, aware of, even searching out those who are suffering and those who are left out or abandoned. And, in his tender love, God heals them and restores them to full life.
The second important step in the faith journey is to return to God with thanksgiving. And that’s where this story becomes an important lesson for us.
Both Naaman, and one of the nine men in today’s Gospel, returned to thank God. Notice that the man in the Gospel, when he saw that he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. There’s another really good lesson in this story. If your cry for help is loud, let your praise of God be even louder!
That kind of gratitude naturally turns to joy, which is another one of the defining marks of a Christian. Unfortunately, many reach the first part of the faith journey, bringing their need to Jesus who, in his mercy, hears them, and then never go any further. They do not live in thanksgiving and praise. They do not return to Jesus and pour out their praise to God. They miss out on the greater blessing God could do in their lives when they take their blessings for granted, when they return to their old lives without experiencing and expressing our gratitude to God for the salvation and hope he has given them. But we do; that’s why we’re here.
And that leads us to the third step in our faith journey, which is to go forth with a new mission. We come to God with a need. We return to God with praise and thanksgiving. Then, as we hear Jesus say to the one man who returned after he was cured, we are called to go forth with a new mission – the mission to spread his name and his truth, and the promise of new life – to others.
Let’s look at the lepers’ story again. While the ten lepers were on their way to the priests, they were cleansed. Nine went back to their old lives. We never hear from them again. One, however, returned to Jesus with loud cries of praise and thanksgiving. And Jesus looked at that one man and said, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” You have healing. You have restoration. And now you have salvation. Rise and go – others need to hear your story.
We gather around our Lord’s Table to offer the Eucharist – which, as I’m sure you know, means “thanksgiving.” Like Naaman in today’s first reading, we know that our God is the one, true God and we worship him alone. We give thanks to God for all that he has given us. We thank him for restoring us to health – most importantly, spiritual health – and praise him for all that he does for us. Let us make sure that we are like the one leper, to go and joyfully proclaim to everyone we meet the saving power of our loving God!