Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 17:11-19
“Go, your faith has saved you”

When we listen to today’s Gospel, we are invited to walk with Jesus as He enters a village where ten lepers cry out for mercy. Leprosy was more than a physical illness. It was a sentence of exclusion, shame, and despair. They were considered cursed, punished by God, already half-dead. And yet, it is precisely these wounded and rejected ones who approach Jesus and dare to call Him by name: “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

This is already a lesson for us. Only those who know their need dare to call upon Jesus with such intimacy. The powerful, the proud, those who feel secure in themselves, do not call Him by name. But the poor, the sick, the sinner—these feel close enough to trust Him, to cry out with confidence. And Jesus does not disappoint them.

He does not recoil in fear, nor condemn them as others did. He speaks a word that restores their dignity: “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” His word is enough. While on the way, they discover that their wounds are healed. Healing begins when they set out in trust, walking on the path Jesus opens before them.

But the Gospel surprises us. Out of the ten, only a Samaritan, a foreigner, returns. He falls at the feet of Jesus, praising God. He recognises not only the gift but the Giver. He has discovered the glory of God revealed in Jesus: a glory not of power and conquest, but of tenderness and mercy.

This is what saddens Jesus—not the lack of “thank you,” but the failure to recognise God’s love shining forth in that moment. Gratitude is more than good manners. True gratitude opens our eyes to God’s presence in our lives. It saves us from the illusion that everything we have is owed to us or is the fruit of our own efforts. Gratitude teaches us to see our lives as grace, as gift.

Dear brothers and sisters, are we like the nine who take the gift and move on, or like the one who returns to glorify God? How often do we pause to say: “Thank You, Lord, for the Gospel that has made my life beautiful—for family, for faith, for moments of forgiveness, for the strength to love despite difficulties”? Gratitude enlarges the heart and allows faith to blossom.

Jesus’ final words to the Samaritan are words for us too: “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” Not only healed, but saved. Salvation is more than physical health; it is discovering the joy of being loved by God and living in that love. May we learn to walk this path of faith, gratitude, and praise, allowing the Gospel to heal the “leprosy” of our world, and to make our lives a hymn of glory to God.

© Claretian Publications, Hong Kong, China
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica 2025