Gratitude! Gratitude!! Gratitude!!! (HOMILY FOR THE 28TH SUNDAY IN THE ORDINARY TIME, YEAR C
Homily for the 28th Sunday in the ordinary time, year C Theme: Gratitude! Gratitude!! Gratitude!!! 2 kings 5:14-17 2 Timothy 2:8-13 Luke 17:11-19 Central to the liturgy of the word today is the theme of gratitude or thankfulness. The sage will tell us that "gratitude is the healthiest of all emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for". It is the healthiest of all emotions because it is "an antidote for negative emotions, a neutralizer of envy, hostility, worry and irritation. "It is savouring, it is not taking things for granted; it is present-oriented". This why feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like having a present and not giving it. Hence, it liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation. The first reading of today tells us that the prophet Elisha cured Naaman, commander of the Syrian army and a Gentile, of his leprosy and he was grateful for it. In his gratitud...