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Proper 23 Year C

How can gratitude heal us today?

In the story from this week's gospel Jesus heals ten people who have been suffering from leprosy in a small village between Samaria and Galilee. In the story he approaches the group, made up of ten Jewish people and one Samaritan person, and tells them that they will be cleansed if they go to the village priest and perform the ritual for purity. As they go on their way, though, they are all healed before they ever get to the priest. While the nine Jewish members of the group run to the village to rejoin their community, the one Samaritan member comes back to Jesus to give thanks for what has happened. In this moment Jesus tells him, "Your faith has healed you." There is an interesting difference in this story between the initial act of cleansing that takes place for the ten as they are on their way to the priest and the pronouncement that the healing declared for one who came back to give thanks. The two words 'cleansed' and 'healed' are different words in Greek. The first means to be purified, meaning that all ten were 'made clean' from their leprosy and could rejoin their community. The second word 'made well' or 'healed' is actually the same word that is in other places translated as 'saved.' This is only pronounced for the one who comes back and gives thanks. This one person is not only cleansed but also healed because of their act of gratitude. This week pay attention to who/what you are grateful for in your own life. How could you express that gratitude this week? How might expressing this gratitude lead to healing?

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