A certain priest friend of mine gave a very inspiring homily in church one Sunday morning. And afterwards, an excited young lady came up to him as he greeted people at the door after Mass. Searching for just the right words to convey just how much the homily had meant to her, in her gratitude she exclaimed “Father, I thought your homily was great. I really want to thank you for it.” “Thank you, young lady,” the priest replied. “You may be interested in knowing that after I die, I hope to have all of my homilies and sermons published.” “That would be wonderful,” the young lady said. “The sooner the better.” Sometimes, we have to be careful about how we say ‘thank you’.

Today we are being reminded about the importance of being grateful. Having an attitude of Gratitude can change our whole way of thinking. People who are grateful are happier. They have less mental problems and live longer than people who are not grateful. Being grateful makes us appreciate everything - the big and the small – in life. We need to be grateful for our blessings. God has done so much for us. Even in our bad times, we need to remember that. Our crosses cannot make us less grateful for the good things that we do have. We need to always have grateful hearts.

Our Gospel story today emphasized the importance of gratitude. Ten lepers come up to Jesus and ask Him to heal them. Ten lepers get sent by Jesus to go and see the priests, which was in keeping with the Jewish ritual law. Ten lepers get healed on the way. One leper returns to our Lord and gives thanks for what God has done. This story is about a lot more than just giving thanks. Jesus is once again telling a story that is loaded with meaning concerning the Kingdom of God and those who do respond to what God is offering, and those who don’t respond to what Jesus is offering. Would you have been that one?

I think that it is important to recognize that the ten lepers had the courage to ask Jesus for His help. The asking is important. Jesus wants them and us to ask. Their petition is not only accepted, but it is expected. How can one know what is needed if one does not ask? Asking demonstrates ownership and responsibility in seeking that which is needed. How many times do all of us mistakenly believe that humility prohibits us from asking for what is needed in this life? So many times, humility becomes our excuse for not asking when in reality it is our pride that keeps us silent. In Alcoholics Anonymous, the starting point for recovery becomes the realization by the alcoholic that he or she has a problem and that the individual must seek out the help so desperately needed to get better. Alcoholics have to do it to get better. The lepers had to ask for help to get healed. Ten lepers got healed that day because they dared to ask! Would you have asked? Would you have dared?

When the lepers ask for help, Jesus gives them instructions to go and show themselves to the priests. The lepers were on their way there when they were unexpectedly healed. The healing happened as they did what Jesus told them to do. They were obedient. Maybe they wouldn’t have been healed, if they hadn’t followed Jesus ‘ instructions, if they weren’t obedient. This is so important for us to hear. We need to be obedient. Obedience is like a dirty word in our society and culture today. It’s like you can’t have a mind of your own and be obedient. We choose to be obedient. We choose it freely because we know that God has miracles in store for us when we do things His way, and not our own. All ten lepers were obedient and they were healed. Are you obedient? And if not, why not?

Once they were healed, nine lepers went their own way. Maybe they went to a soccer game, maybe they went to Applebee’s, maybe they went to a park - I don’t know. We do know that what they didn’t do was come back and give thanks. I mean, Geez, these guys have just been healed of the most horrible affliction that could possibly happen to you back in those days, and they are happy. The Gospel says that they rejoiced in their healing. But only ONE of them goes back to say ‘thank you’. And it was a Samaritan at that. The Samaritans were foreigners. They were strange and unfriendly. Nobody would ever have expected a Samaritan to go back. But he did! Would YOU have gone back? Would you have taken the time to give thanks to God? Do you take the time to show your thanks to God?

In a world consumed with the attitude of “what have you done for me lately?”, this story reminds us of the bounty of a world blessed by God. We need to be grateful. We have so many blessings. We have so much that so many others don’t. Thank God that His blessings and His goodness are not dependent upon our gratitude or lack thereof. But we’ve got to see and realize the truth. God is the source of all of our blessings. It’s so easy to forget. Can you be the ONE who remembers to give thanks?

God bless us and give us grateful hearts, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit… AMEN !!!

St. Maria Goretti … Pray for us !!!