Naaman and the Samaritan: More Faith Outside the Community than Within, the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time–Year C

"Jesus with the one leper Who Returned to Give Thanks" by William Brassey Hole.

My Sisters and Brothers:

Today’s Scriptures remarkably highlight two individuals: Naaman the Syrian is featured in the reading from the Old Testament, and a Samaritan is singled-out and praised by Jesus in the Gospel.  In one way or another, both men demonstrated great faith in God, and were consequently cured of the terrible disease of leprosy; because they also expressed tremendous gratitude to God for what had been done for them, both were then held in great esteem.

After his cure, Naaman “returned with his whole retinue to Elisha and said ‘now I know there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel’ and ‘I will no longer offer holocausts or sacrifice to any other god except to the Lord’” (see 2 Kings 5:14-17,19).  The Samaritan, one among ten lepers who had cried out to Jesus for pity, was also “the only one to return to him, as he glorified God in a loud voice, and fell at the Lord’s feet expressing thanks” (see Luke 17:11-19).  The two cured and very grateful men were respectfully sent back into their lives with offerings of peace and grace; Elisha said to Naaman “go in peace,” and Jesus exclaimed to the Samaritan “stand up and go, your faith has saved you!”

While these accounts encourage us to imitate the faith and gratitude of Naaman and the Samaritan, what’s especially noteworthy is both men were “foreigners,” and so neither were born into the community of God’s Chosen People.  In contrast, “the other nine” also cured by Jesus in the Gospel weren’t “foreigners,” and thus were poignantly criticized for not showing similar faith and/or gratitude. 

Syrians and Samaritans were thought not to have true faith, and for any one of them to be cured by God, and then to have shown gratitude for it, would have been surprising news in both Old and New Testament times.  What’s made clear to us by these two stories is that people “outside of the faith community” might actually have more faith than those within it.  They also admonish all people of faith to offer their heartfelt thanks to God for all that’s been done for them.

As I reflected on these stories, I was compelled to ponder those “foreigners” of our own time who are thought to be “outside of the faith community,” and against whom today’s metaphorical “chosen people” might harbor resentments and/or feelings of condemnation.

We might ask, “who are the excluded, the lowly, the marginalized, the ostracized, the outcasts, the outsiders, and/or the rejected in our own time, place, and church?”  And “assuming we are ‘on the inside,’ against whom do we willingly discriminate, and/or shut-out of our personal and communal lives because we self-righteously believe ourselves to be superior?”  Furthermore, “if there are people we’ve treated or judged as such, how might we immediately change our attitudes and behaviors toward them?”

It’s possible our answers to these questions might make us uncomfortable, and perhaps even cause us some confusion, but I think it’s wise for us to be honest with ourselves.  A good reflection on the moral of today’s readings might help us do that well!

Just as in today’s Scriptures, may the “Naamans” and “Samaritans” (i.e., the “foreigners” of our own day), teach us a thing or two about being charitable, compassionate, forgiving, merciful, nonjudgmental, objective, open-minded, and patient! Then, we might even find ourselves surprised when the genuine goodness and faith of “an outcast” actually inspires us, and also causes us to give thanks to our ever-loving God!

Praise God!  Friar Timothy

 

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