28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, C October 14, 2007
If this Gospel story is any indication, 9 out of 10 people have trouble expressing gratitude, for only one of ten lepers came back to thank Jesus. Of course, at the center of Catholic faith and life is Eucharist, a word from ancient Greek, meaning thanksgiving. It’s always a challenge to remember what happens here, why we are here. Do we sometimes find ourselves praying through a whole Mass without once consciously uttering a prayer of thanks?
Three words in the Mass are repeated over and over again, “praise,” we praise God for who God is, “thanks,” we thank God for what God does, and “thanksgiving.” “Thanks,” “thanksgiving” and “praise have already occurred 7 times in this Mass. They will reappear another 17 times before we depart, most often in the Eucharistic Prayer; the great prayer of thanks for Christ’s saving death, for his resurrection victory over death, for union with the risen Lord in Holy Communion, and for the hope of joining Christ someday in eternal life.
But, there are obstacles to saying “thank you,” both here at Mass and in daily life.
The first obstacle to gratitude is taking God’s gifts for granted. We Americans tend to feel entitled - entitled to the latest gadgets that make life faster, easier, more convenient, entitled to four weeks vacation, to health care, to social security, entitled to a nice house, to two cars in the garage, to three meals on the table. Feeling entitled is to insist that I deserve it, I earned it, I have a right to it. Entitlement is opposed to the truth that everything and everyone is God’s gift to us, pure grace, unearned and undeserved. An entitlement attitude is to take things and other people for granted. Entitlement has no room for thanksgiving, because if I’m entitled, there is nothing to be thankful for. Now, here’s a strategy to take nothing for granted. Practice thanking God for the simplest things. “Dear Lord, thank you for this pen I am writing with. Thank you for my toothbrush. Thank you for the buttons on my shirt.” Do that and you’ll certainly remember to thank God for the bigger things and for the people in your life.
Another obstacle to gratitude is rushing through life. Do you run through the day? Well, add a few more things to do and watch life speed by even faster. Jesus’ prescription is simple. “Come away and rest a while.” So, take time to pray. Meditate on nature, on the air you breathe, on the heart that beats in your chest. Gratitude will soon follow.
A third obstacle to gratitude is negativity. Do you see only what is wrong with other people, with society or with the Church? Are you fixated on your problems, your aches and pains? God’s remedy for negativity: “God looked at everything he had made and saw that it was very good!” Model your attitude on the Lord’s positive attitude. Take 10 minutes each day to discover what is good and right and happy in your life. Focus on the positive and you will find much to give thanks for!
My last obstacle to gratitude for today is envy. Do you constantly compare yourself to others and not measure up? How can you be grateful if everyone else is better off? The prescription?Ask how God has blessed you today. Never mind what someone else has that you don’t. Know that when it comes to you, there is absolutely no comparison in God’s eyes! Let there be no comparison to you in your own eyes, for there is no greater worth and dignity than to be a child of God. This is something you can be very thankful for!
So, to summarize, beware the enemies of gratitude. Taking nothing for granted as if you are entitled. Slow down and take time to smell the flowers. You can then whisper a prayer of thanks for them. Identify the positives in your life. Write them down. Look at them every day. Whisper another prayer of thanks for each one. And envy no one. You are incomparable; for God loves no one more than God loves you! Finally, here at Mass when we celebrate Eucharist, thanksgiving, remember to consciously say “thank you” for the greatest gift of all, life forever in Christ.
[Introduction to the first reading]
In the following story Naaman, a gentile from Damascus, is cured of leprosy while visiting Israel. Because of this he carries home two mule loads of dirt from the Promised Land. Naaman would build an altar on this transported earth so he could worship the God of Israel on Israelite soil. For Naaman, living outside Israel, this dirt became a tangible link with the chosen people and with their God.