Where are the other nine?

Gospel of the Day (Luke 17:11-19)

As he continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.

As he was entering a village, ten lepers met (him). They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying, "Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!"

And when he saw them, he said, "Go show yourselves to the priests." As they were going they were cleansed.

And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan.

Jesus said in reply, "Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine?

Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?"

Then he said to him, "Stand up and go; your faith has saved you."

***

Reflections:

"Where are the other nine?"

In our own day we see many people at prayer but, unfortunately, we see none of them turning back to give thanks to God... «Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine?» As I think you will remember, it was in these words that our Savior complained about the lack of gratitude of the other nine lepers. We read that they knew well how to make «supplications, prayers, petitions» since they lifted up their voices, crying out: «Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!» But they lacked the fourth thing required by the apostle Paul: «thanksgiving» (1Tm 2,1) for they did not turn back nor give thanks to God.

We see still more in our own day people who implore God for what they lack but a mere handful who seem to be grateful for the blessings they have received. There is no harm in imploring him, but what causes God not to grant our prayers is his finding us lacking in gratitude. After all, perhaps it is even an act of mercy on his part to hold back from the ungrateful what they are asking for so that they may not be judged all the more rigorously on account of their ingratitude... For it is sometimes out of mercy that God holds back his mercy...

So you see that not all those who are healed of the leprosy of this world, I mean their manifest complaints, profit by their healing. Indeed, many are secretly afflicted with an ulcer worse than leprosy, all the more dangerous in that it is more interior. That is why it was right that the Savior of the world should ask where the other nine lepers were, since sinners avoid healing. So, too, after his sin, God questioned the first man: «Where are you?» (Gn 3,9).