Outsiders, “others,” are prominent in our Sunday Scriptures this week. In Hebrew Scripture, many “outsiders” are part of Israel’s story, such as Melchizedek, Abimelech, Jethro, Balaam, Rahab, Ruth, Cyrus and, in today’s first reading, Naaman.
Naaman was a Syrian military man who comes to the Hebrew prophet Elijah for healing from a skin disease, on the recommendation of his Hebrew servant girl. Our Gospel follows the healing by Elijah with its account of Jesus curing 10 lepers — themselves “others,” people ostracized from Jewish society. Only one of the 10, a foreigner, an “other,” comes back to give thanks. Clearly Jesus reached out to other non-Jewish people in our Scriptures about him, like the Roman centurion’s servant and the woman at the well.
We are in the last weeks of lectionary Cycle C featuring the Gospel of Luke. Luke began his Gospel with the Christmas story where angels proclaim that the good news of Jesus’ birth is for “all” people. In Luke’s companion volume, Acts of the Apostles, the church of many “others,” a gentile (non-Jewish) church, is born. Today our nation continues adjusting to shifting demographics, as well as U.S. economic and political power being challenged by many “other” nations. Our U.S. Catholic church also is adjusting to the reality of being served by priests from other countries and welcoming Catholic immigrant parishioners from many places new to us. When we gather for Eucharist on Sunday, we gather with people we don’t know, the “others” in the congregation. Today’s Hebrew Scripture and Gospel invite us to continue opening ourselves to the “others” in our lives, and approaching them with receptive hearts, listening ears and helping hands.
— Blog entry by Sister Mary Garascia
The post October 12, 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Outsiders: a Sunday Scriptures blog first appeared on Sisters of the Precious Blood.