Gospel (Mt 8:5-11)
As Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, beseeching him and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress.”
And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
But the centurion answered him, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.”
Commentary
In today’s Gospel we see a foreigner who is presented to us as a model of faith. In fact, he receives one of Jesus’ greatest praises recorded in the Gospels: “Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”
The centurion acts with simplicity. He has a problem and goes to the person who he thinks can help him solve it. But to fix a problem, we first need to recognize it. And this sometimes is not easy for us. At times because we are in too much of a hurry. We are short on time, which can lead to overlooking the difficulties of the people around us.
It may also be the case that we have stopped praying or that we fail to dedicate quality time to prayer. This can lead to overlooking others’ needs, or thinking that time alone will solve a problem.
The centurion gives us a lesson of faith in our Lord. But it is a faith that is preceded by charity, by being able to slow down and see with real concern the needs of the others.
The centurion’s faith leads him to go to our Lord and ask for such a great miracle. He knows that he doesn’t have that ability to heal his servant, but that Jesus does. And he opens his heart to our Lord, showing his own vulnerability and his absolute need for a miracle from God.