28th Sunday in Ordinary Time--Liturgical Cycle C

Lectionary Readings
Reading I: 2 Kings 5:14-17
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 98:1-4
Reading II: 2 Timothy 2:8-13
Gospel: Luke 17:11-19

Homily
In the Lukan Gospel cycle the four Sundays in October can be described in their liturgical setting as an Octoberfest of Faith. Each Sunday’s scriptures focus in on this virtue. Last Sunday we saw, in the disciples’ cry, “Lord, increase our faith,” that it is more than a set of “creedal” statements to which we give assent, but that it is also a disposition of soul, a relationship with God which can be increased, deepened, fostered. Faith is that loving relationship with another whereby we can know that we trust, rely on, depend on one another. Faith is a loving relationship with God whereby we know we can place ourselves in his caring hands. “Lord,” we pray, “increase our faith;” let us grow in our relationship with you, O God.

In today’s Octoberfest of Faith, the scriptures speak to us of how this faith relationship can be increased and deepened. This week our Renew 2000 calls us to a lively relationship with God, the Creator, God; upon whom everything that “is” depends on God for its is-ness, the very existence of the universe rests on God, the Father and creator of all.

The beautiful story of Elisha and Naaman helps us experience the depth of their relationship with God. After the foreigner is healed, the prophet would not accept Naaman’s “thank-you” offering. The Jewish prophet knew the healing was the Creator’s doing. “Give praise to him.” So Naaman took a load of earth from Israel back home so he could give thanks and praise on holy ground.

The cured Samaritan came back to Jesus praising and thanking him. Jesus accepted the “Thanks,” pointing out that this very act of praising and thanking was itself an act of faith, a relationship with God, our Father and Creator. “Go,” Jesus said, “your faith (your thanks and your praising) has been your salvation.”

Have you ever slowed down enough to notice the kinds of things we do to show our appreciation and thanks and praise, our basic respect and love, for one another? I am thinking of my Dad who never failed at the end of the workweek to bring home some little gifts for my mom, and to my brother and me when we were in grade school. For mom it was usually one cut flower; for us it was something from his office—a paper clip, a scratch pad, a pencil, a rubber band—whatever.

Our Sunday liturgy is crammed full of these simple gestures and signs of faith—of our relationship with the Creator God, Our Father in Heaven. The Vatican Council in fact said of these gestures, “Good Liturgy (good signs, good gestures) increases faith; bad Liturgy weakens our faith (relationship).” The recalling of our baptism as we sign ourselves with Holy Water on entering the assembly, the way we reverence the Eucharistic presence, our standing at attention, kneeling in adoration, and sitting for attentive listening, the honest attempt at song, the bringing up our tithes in forms of bread and wine, the greeting and hospitality of the “peace” rite, the communion procession to the altar table, the reflective silence, the way we dress. These are all gestures and signs that, when placed with reverent thanks and praise, are expressions of faith and those very human acts increase that faith, that loving relationship with our God.

And all of creation is made up of God’s signs, God’s gestures, to us—signs of the Father and Creator’s loving call to a relationship with each of us. And our human gestures, like those of Naaman and the Samaritan, increase and deepen our faith, our relationship with our God and with one another.
--Fr. Pat

Excerpt from "A Catholic's Companion: Liturgical Cycle C" (c)2000 C. Patrick Creed
Published by Watchmaker Press. Maggie Hettinger, editor