Humbly hear and see

The commander of the army in Damascus has leprosy and the slave girl captured from Israel advises him to go to the Prophet Elisha for healing in the passages from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. FriarJude Winkler notes that the traditional Middle East hospitality is not shown the military man as Elisha remains in his dwelling and gives the Syrian instructions to wash in the muddy creek which was the Jordan River. Jeanne Schuler ofCreighton University picks up the necessary humility which the commander reluctantly accepts to bare himself in front of his slaves from whom he has accepted correction for his pride and receive the healing which is attributed to Yahweh. Our preconceived notions of the way things are or should be are an obstacle to our ability to see how God is able to enter our lives with transformative power. Jesus, in the passage from the Gospel written by the Gentile Luke, astounds the people in the synagogue of His home town, Nazareth, with the assertion that the transformative mission given Israel by the Prophet Isaiah is meant for all peoples and that he in their midst is the Messianic Servant of God who is called today as Prophet to bring the promises to fulfillment. Our faith requires us to trust that we are agents of the mission of God to transform the world. We are tempted by our contentment with the status quo to treat the truth of our baptismal role as prophet as being improbable. Humility and the willingness to hear and see the Word among us in the people of our lives are attitudes we can practice so that the life giving instructions from Jesus will be witnessed in our daily action.