Fr. Michael Seiler
today's Old Testament passage, we learn of a might man of valor, called Naaman. Naaman was a mighty warrior. He was courageous. He was honored by the king of his land, the land of Syria. But he was also a leper.
Now, the Syrians were not held to the same purity laws that the Israelites were, so Naaman could be a leper, even while he held public office. It was merely an illness that he had to deal with, but not one that removed him from his people. We find that he is married, and lives with his family and slaves. In fact, one of the Israelite girls that Naaman had brought back as a slave from a recent raid into the land of the Israelites, tells Naaman's wife that if only he would go to Israel to seek a prophet named Elisha that he could be healed. So Naaman asks his king if he can go and his king says, "Yes. And I'll send a letter with you explaining what I want to have happen." Now, this king of Syria had made many attacks into Israel, so when Naaman shows up with a letter asking that Naaman be healed of his leprosy, the King of Israel obviously thinks this is a ploy, a trick of some kind to draw him into battle. But Elisha hears of it, and tells his king, "Send him to me." Elisha knew not to worry, but that Naaman would know soon enough who was God.
A Visit to Elisha
So, after Elisha had told the king to send Naaman to him, Naaman comes to his door. But rather than coming to the door himself, Elisha tells Naaman to go and wash himself in the Jordan river seven times. Whether Elisha was trying to keep the Jewish purity laws, or simply acting out of God's command, we don't know, but the fact remains that by not coming to the door, Elisha made one Syrian general very, very angry.
And why wouldn't he be mad? After all, he was a mighty man of valor, courageous, held in high esteem by the king of Syria. Why wouldn't Elisha come out to meet him at the door? He's so ticked he's ready to head home and call it quits. But his servants come to his aid at this point, saying, "Hey. Stop. If he'd told you to go off and do something great - something equaling your obvious greatness - you would have done it. What's the problem with a simple bath?"
See, this was Naaman's problem. He says that he thought Elisha would come out, call upon God and through his prayer and supplication for Naaman, God would heal him. In other words, "I would have expected him to come and do this for me!"
The Big Coolness
Let's face it. Sometimes we're like Naaman. Why do we want the Big and Mighty thing to happen? I had a friend in California who was constantly telling me that he wanted God to show up in a might way. And he had exact ways that God could show up in a mighty way to help him truly believe, and take away any lingering doubts that he might have about God and his love for us. But it would require God coming in that big and mighty way to help him out.
What makes us so special that we can demand God show up in a particular way? What makes us so special that we need to see it the way we demand it, rather than the way God might want to show Himself strong and mighty in our lives?
Pride. Plain and simple.
That friend of mine? One day I asked him, "Do you really just want God to show up in a mighty way so that you don't need to accept the small stuff and just believe? Because maybe you know that by believing the small stuff you might just have to change your life and submit completely to a God you're trying to avoid?" Naturally, he didn't like that question too much, but it's true. When we demand things of God that they happen our way, we are merely trying to avoid making Him Lord of our lives.
Godhood
And that's the big problem. Pride isn't just wanting things our way, ro thingking that we deserve something in particular. Pride is playing God. Think of that for a moment. Pride is making ourselves out to be God. And we know that we can choose to do this. We learn in Catechism that God made us in His image, which means that He made us with the ability to choose our own path. God gave us free will. We can choose to have it our way, or we can choose to have it His way. He allows that because He's loving, and bigger than our petty behavior. It's simple logic to to figure out that choosing our own way is not His way. But that's not what was intended. We have the right to choose our own way, but choosing our own way is the way of pride and rebellion.
The only other being we know of who chose that option and never left that path is Lucifer.
We are prone to choosing a prideful reaction just as Naaman did. We are prone to demanding things of God the way that we want them. We are prone to being upset with God when things don't go our way, and with what God has provided. We are prone to discontentment in our lives because things are not as I want them.
A Different Approach
The Leper we find in today's Gospel passage, we find a leper who was a polar opposite to Naaman. Being and Jew, he was kept outside the city, outcast, far from his family and friends because he was "unclean." And yet, he was bold in coming to Jesus, knowing that he could was breaking some rules in approaching him. But what did he do? He came, bowed down to Jesus, and said, "If you are willing, you can make me clean."
He came, humbled himself before Jesus, and submitted his healing as an option to Jesus. He didn't demand. He simply said, "If you are willing." And Jesus was, of course, willing, and healed him. He was moved to compassion, because this man was humble, and showed a contentment with his situation that allowed him to go with whatever option Jesus chose: healing, or not healing. Now, obviously, he wasn't content with his situation in the sense that he was ok to die with it, or live as an outcast. What I mean is that he was content to accept the fact that Jesus might not heal him. He humbled himself before the Lord, and was ready to accept whatever Jeus had in store for him.
What a far cry from Naaman, the great and mighty warrior. Naaman wanted it to be great and fantastic, and instead, he was told to take a bath. But, when his servants talked him down from his anger, he went instead, and washed in the Jordan. And what happened? He was healed. He was healed of his leprosy, and knew that the Lord of Israel was the true God. Naaman could have chosen differently at this point. He could have chosen not to humble himself, gone back to his "greater country" and washed himself in the "greater rivers" of Syria, but then he wouldn't have seen something as great an mighty as a healing of his skin so that it was a smooth as a child's. He could have chosen to think more highly of himself than he ought to think. But he didn't. He chose instead to do as he was commanded, washed himself in the Jordan, and came to know God.
Dealing with our Pride
This "thinking more highly of ourselves" is something that Paul warns us against in Romans 12. Verse three tells us that we should not be prideful, but that we ought to think appropriately of ourselves according to the measure of faith God has given each of us. In other words, to be humble, and see ourselves in the light of what God has created for us to be, and for us to do. How do we do that exactly?
Verses one and two of this passage tell us that we are to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God, acceptable to Him. Today's New Testament passage in 1 Corinthians tells us that we are supposed to do all to the Glory of God (10:31). The world says, "We are Lord of our own lives," but God says, "I am Lord of your life. Submit to me." The world says, "What is right for me is what is right." But God says, "Listen to me, and I'll tell you what is right." We are not to conform to those types of thinking, but are to let our minds be renewed by what God wants for us.
And if we allow it, that tends to crush our pride into a fine powder. We cannot simultaneously seek our own desires and seek God when our desires conflict with God's desire for us. And if we don't let our desires, our pride, die, then we will find our discontentment with life growing until we become bitter and resentful.
And if we allow this renewing of our minds, we find that our attitude becomes one of thankfulness, one that allows God to make the decisions in our lives because we know that His way is better than anything we could choose for ourselves. The Leper that came to Jesus did it. Naaman eventually did it too, and lived. If we choose to do it God's way, we'll learn to live as well.
Being a Living Sacrifice
Can we do it? Yes! Of course we can. Through the Holy Spirit God gives us to point us toward Himself. The passage in Romans 12 continues in verse four to tell us that God has indeed got something planned for each of us to do. Each of us has a ministry that only we can do through God working in us. We receive that call to ministry at our Baptism, and we live it out once we submit to God. Paul very clearly states that the element necessary, however, is that we humble ourselves, and through that, we find the work that God has for us.
I've found that one of the simplest ways to combat a sense of pride is to recite the Lord's Prayer. Jesus himself told us that this is in fact how we ought to pray. Pray this prayer on a daily basis, and you'll be confronted with several truths: God is our Father, He is in charge, and we aren't. God provides: we might work for our food, but God gives us the work to do. God forgives us when we overstep our bounds. God's will is best, and if we are content with that, God will bring to reality all the other things we need. They may not be what we desire, but they'll be what we need.
We can do this. We seek Him daily, offering ourselves as an open vessel. We can be a living sacrifice, and as we do, we'll find God providing healing for our minds and our bodies. and we'll find that He is working in us through the ministry He has for us, as long as we can ask the question, "How important is He?"
today's Old Testament passage, we learn of a might man of valor, called Naaman. Naaman was a mighty warrior. He was courageous. He was honored by the king of his land, the land of Syria. But he was also a leper.
Now, the Syrians were not held to the same purity laws that the Israelites were, so Naaman could be a leper, even while he held public office. It was merely an illness that he had to deal with, but not one that removed him from his people. We find that he is married, and lives with his family and slaves. In fact, one of the Israelite girls that Naaman had brought back as a slave from a recent raid into the land of the Israelites, tells Naaman's wife that if only he would go to Israel to seek a prophet named Elisha that he could be healed. So Naaman asks his king if he can go and his king says, "Yes. And I'll send a letter with you explaining what I want to have happen." Now, this king of Syria had made many attacks into Israel, so when Naaman shows up with a letter asking that Naaman be healed of his leprosy, the King of Israel obviously thinks this is a ploy, a trick of some kind to draw him into battle. But Elisha hears of it, and tells his king, "Send him to me." Elisha knew not to worry, but that Naaman would know soon enough who was God.
A Visit to Elisha
So, after Elisha had told the king to send Naaman to him, Naaman comes to his door. But rather than coming to the door himself, Elisha tells Naaman to go and wash himself in the Jordan river seven times. Whether Elisha was trying to keep the Jewish purity laws, or simply acting out of God's command, we don't know, but the fact remains that by not coming to the door, Elisha made one Syrian general very, very angry.
And why wouldn't he be mad? After all, he was a mighty man of valor, courageous, held in high esteem by the king of Syria. Why wouldn't Elisha come out to meet him at the door? He's so ticked he's ready to head home and call it quits. But his servants come to his aid at this point, saying, "Hey. Stop. If he'd told you to go off and do something great - something equaling your obvious greatness - you would have done it. What's the problem with a simple bath?"
See, this was Naaman's problem. He says that he thought Elisha would come out, call upon God and through his prayer and supplication for Naaman, God would heal him. In other words, "I would have expected him to come and do this for me!"
The Big Coolness
Let's face it. Sometimes we're like Naaman. Why do we want the Big and Mighty thing to happen? I had a friend in California who was constantly telling me that he wanted God to show up in a might way. And he had exact ways that God could show up in a mighty way to help him truly believe, and take away any lingering doubts that he might have about God and his love for us. But it would require God coming in that big and mighty way to help him out.
What makes us so special that we can demand God show up in a particular way? What makes us so special that we need to see it the way we demand it, rather than the way God might want to show Himself strong and mighty in our lives?
Pride. Plain and simple.
That friend of mine? One day I asked him, "Do you really just want God to show up in a mighty way so that you don't need to accept the small stuff and just believe? Because maybe you know that by believing the small stuff you might just have to change your life and submit completely to a God you're trying to avoid?" Naturally, he didn't like that question too much, but it's true. When we demand things of God that they happen our way, we are merely trying to avoid making Him Lord of our lives.
Godhood
And that's the big problem. Pride isn't just wanting things our way, ro thingking that we deserve something in particular. Pride is playing God. Think of that for a moment. Pride is making ourselves out to be God. And we know that we can choose to do this. We learn in Catechism that God made us in His image, which means that He made us with the ability to choose our own path. God gave us free will. We can choose to have it our way, or we can choose to have it His way. He allows that because He's loving, and bigger than our petty behavior. It's simple logic to to figure out that choosing our own way is not His way. But that's not what was intended. We have the right to choose our own way, but choosing our own way is the way of pride and rebellion.
The only other being we know of who chose that option and never left that path is Lucifer.
We are prone to choosing a prideful reaction just as Naaman did. We are prone to demanding things of God the way that we want them. We are prone to being upset with God when things don't go our way, and with what God has provided. We are prone to discontentment in our lives because things are not as I want them.
A Different Approach
The Leper we find in today's Gospel passage, we find a leper who was a polar opposite to Naaman. Being and Jew, he was kept outside the city, outcast, far from his family and friends because he was "unclean." And yet, he was bold in coming to Jesus, knowing that he could was breaking some rules in approaching him. But what did he do? He came, bowed down to Jesus, and said, "If you are willing, you can make me clean."
He came, humbled himself before Jesus, and submitted his healing as an option to Jesus. He didn't demand. He simply said, "If you are willing." And Jesus was, of course, willing, and healed him. He was moved to compassion, because this man was humble, and showed a contentment with his situation that allowed him to go with whatever option Jesus chose: healing, or not healing. Now, obviously, he wasn't content with his situation in the sense that he was ok to die with it, or live as an outcast. What I mean is that he was content to accept the fact that Jesus might not heal him. He humbled himself before the Lord, and was ready to accept whatever Jeus had in store for him.
What a far cry from Naaman, the great and mighty warrior. Naaman wanted it to be great and fantastic, and instead, he was told to take a bath. But, when his servants talked him down from his anger, he went instead, and washed in the Jordan. And what happened? He was healed. He was healed of his leprosy, and knew that the Lord of Israel was the true God. Naaman could have chosen differently at this point. He could have chosen not to humble himself, gone back to his "greater country" and washed himself in the "greater rivers" of Syria, but then he wouldn't have seen something as great an mighty as a healing of his skin so that it was a smooth as a child's. He could have chosen to think more highly of himself than he ought to think. But he didn't. He chose instead to do as he was commanded, washed himself in the Jordan, and came to know God.
Dealing with our Pride
This "thinking more highly of ourselves" is something that Paul warns us against in Romans 12. Verse three tells us that we should not be prideful, but that we ought to think appropriately of ourselves according to the measure of faith God has given each of us. In other words, to be humble, and see ourselves in the light of what God has created for us to be, and for us to do. How do we do that exactly?
Verses one and two of this passage tell us that we are to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God, acceptable to Him. Today's New Testament passage in 1 Corinthians tells us that we are supposed to do all to the Glory of God (10:31). The world says, "We are Lord of our own lives," but God says, "I am Lord of your life. Submit to me." The world says, "What is right for me is what is right." But God says, "Listen to me, and I'll tell you what is right." We are not to conform to those types of thinking, but are to let our minds be renewed by what God wants for us.
And if we allow it, that tends to crush our pride into a fine powder. We cannot simultaneously seek our own desires and seek God when our desires conflict with God's desire for us. And if we don't let our desires, our pride, die, then we will find our discontentment with life growing until we become bitter and resentful.
And if we allow this renewing of our minds, we find that our attitude becomes one of thankfulness, one that allows God to make the decisions in our lives because we know that His way is better than anything we could choose for ourselves. The Leper that came to Jesus did it. Naaman eventually did it too, and lived. If we choose to do it God's way, we'll learn to live as well.
Being a Living Sacrifice
Can we do it? Yes! Of course we can. Through the Holy Spirit God gives us to point us toward Himself. The passage in Romans 12 continues in verse four to tell us that God has indeed got something planned for each of us to do. Each of us has a ministry that only we can do through God working in us. We receive that call to ministry at our Baptism, and we live it out once we submit to God. Paul very clearly states that the element necessary, however, is that we humble ourselves, and through that, we find the work that God has for us.
I've found that one of the simplest ways to combat a sense of pride is to recite the Lord's Prayer. Jesus himself told us that this is in fact how we ought to pray. Pray this prayer on a daily basis, and you'll be confronted with several truths: God is our Father, He is in charge, and we aren't. God provides: we might work for our food, but God gives us the work to do. God forgives us when we overstep our bounds. God's will is best, and if we are content with that, God will bring to reality all the other things we need. They may not be what we desire, but they'll be what we need.
We can do this. We seek Him daily, offering ourselves as an open vessel. We can be a living sacrifice, and as we do, we'll find God providing healing for our minds and our bodies. and we'll find that He is working in us through the ministry He has for us, as long as we can ask the question, "How important is He?"
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