Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

Have you ever heard the interesting question: “How do you peel an onion?” The answer is: “One layer at a time, and sometimes you cry!” The moral of the question is clarified when we come to a moment of decision at a crossroads with many possibilities in front of us. In the light of our readings for this 28^th Sunday perhaps the onion question can challenge us to some personal decisions.

Leprosy was a tragic reality for many people in the ancient world. The Second Book of Kings gives us an in-depth view of how prophetic wisdom interacts with the human condition. In this case, it is the Prophet Elijah coming into contact with the powerful Naaman who is unfortunately struck down with the scourge of leprosy. The full and deeper story revealed a personal journey of insight one layer at a time beginning with a passing remark by a young Jewish servant girl and ending with Naaman having a life-changing conversion. Reaching the core of the onion with ever increasing intensity brought a former pagan leper to a healing cleansing that led to the desire of expressing gratitude in a new experience of faith. It was peeling away the layers that eventually brought both emotional adjustment and the gift of faith.

Each layer being peeled away in the Old Testament story can be found in today’s Gospel. The ten lepers gathered in layers around their common affliction were also shaped by their exclusion from the rest of society. Ten people coming from different even hostile backgrounds were united in the same infectious disease at the margin of society. Movement out of those bonds began with their first common request for mercy when they recognized the prophetic power of Jesus. Perhaps an important element of the peeling onion image is that not all responded in the same way. With the overwhelming prospect of freedom and healing after having been told to honor the protocol of the law, they all felt the release, but only one out of the ten experienced the deepest conversion of heart. This was the layer which compelled the expression of genuine gratitude.

Genuine gratitude is often wrapped in a quick and easy, dare we say habitual, wrappings. We feel good about it, it is the right thing to do and say. But could there be a deeper even most costly gratitude that comes if there is an onion to be peeled?

Reflection by Fr. Daniel Petsche, OSB