Today’s gospel is the healing of the ten lepers (Lk 17:11-19).  There are several themes that one can draw out of this gospel.  One being ‘thanksgiving’ and how gratitude keeps the heart wide open as it acknowledges the extravagant gifts of God upon us, especially in our need.  The gospel concludes with Jesus addressing the one leper who returned to offer thanksgiving for the healing he received.  Jesus’ reply is telling us something very important on this journey of faith that we are all on. 

Right now, let us ask Jesus, like the apostles: “Increase our faith”.  To ask something, to desire something beyond our ego demands, what would this be like?   To desire and thus to ask from the depths, ‘Out of the depths I cry to you O Lord’…I cry, I desire for my faith to grow.

How does an ancient Rule, specifically the Rule of St. Benedict, offer a perspective and ways forward in implementing ‘synodality’ for the present and future renewal of monastic life and of the Church?  This is the subject of a short essay by the Abbot Primate of the Benedictine Congregation, Gregory Polan, in the American Benedictine Review (March, 2022,73:1, p.1-9).  Abbot Gregory focuses on chapter 3 of the Rule, ‘Calling the Brethren to Counsel’.  He notes that there are other references to synodality in the Rule, however, for his short essay he focuses only on chapter 3.  I like to reflect on two other areas where a ‘synodal’ reality exists in the Rule of Benedict, and there are more references than what I will speak about this morning.

“The lamp of faith requires being continuously nourished by the heart-to-heart encounter with Jesus in prayer and in listening to his Word,” said Pope Francis.

St. Luke’s gospel for this Sunday has three pericopes, all on the theme of prayer.  The gospel begins with one of the disciples asking Jesus to teach them to pray.  And Jesus’ reply is the Lord’s prayer.  Jesus spoke in Aramaic, and he begins by addressing God as ‘Abba’.  Most scholars assert that the use of Abba in his native language was very personal and intimate: Abba in Jesus’ language is more like ‘daddy’ in English.  What is this saying?  For Jesus God was very close to him in an intimate bond of love:  a covenant of love between Son and Father.  This covenantal relationship was confirmed at his baptism.