Monday of the First Week of Advent
Today’s Reflection
Gospel: Mt 8: 5-11
December 4, 2023 | Monday
When Jesus entered Capernaum, an army captain approached him, to ask his help, “Sir, my servant lies sick at home. He is paralyzed and suffers terribly.” Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”The captain answered, “I am not worthy to have you under my roof. Just give an order and my boy will be healed. For I myself, a junior officer, give orders to my soldiers. And if I say to one, ‘Go!’ he goes; and if I say to another, ‘Come!’ he comes; and if I say to my servant, ‘Do this!’ he does it.”When Jesus heard this, he was astonished; and said to those who were following him, “I tell you, I have not found such faith in Israel. I say to you, many will come from east and west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob at the feast in the kingdom of heaven.
Today’s Reflection:
We can readily surmise the kindheartedness of the army captain (centurion) in today’s gospel. A slave was treated as a nobody during that time. Their masters can easily acquire a new slave in cases of sickness or death. Thus, for the centurion to come to Jesus and request Him to heal his servant says much not only about his goodness but more so about his faith. Jesus Himself praised Him by saying: “I tell you, I have not found such faith in Israel.” This could easily be a narrative about the centurion but the following words of Jesus point to another lesson: “I say to you, many will come from east and west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the kingdom of heaven.” This teaches us a lesson about faith even outside its traditional boundaries in Israel and its own boundaries as well. God also reveals Himself to those from the “east and west” and to all the peoples of the earth, even to an army official who serves the Roman empire. The most fitting tribute to the centurion’s faith came when his words have adapted by the framers of the Roman liturgy as the congregation’s reply to the priest just before Communion: “Lord, I amn not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.”/ Vulnerasti, 2023
