Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more

In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich. It is very easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements in comparison with what we owe others. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), Ethics (1949)

Gospel Text: (LK 17:11-19)
As Jesus 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.”

Each one of us can draw a parallel with the image St Luke describes of the leper in today’s gospel to the outcasts in our own society, who also have names and surnames like we do: immigrants, drug addicts, wrongdoers, AIDS victims, the unemployed, the destitute.....................................

Jesus wants to heal them all, to remedy their suffering, to solve their problems; and He expects our unselfish, free, and total collaboration... for love.

We can also assume Jesus' lesson today is for all of us, for we are sinners and in need of forgiveness, we are beggars, who depend totally on God. Would we be willing to say like the leper «Jesus, Master, have pity on me! » (cf. Lk 17:13)?

Do we imitate the cleansed leper that goes back to Jesus thanking him out loud? Accordingly, how do we thank God for the gift of our life, and that of our family; for the grace of our faith, for the Holy Eucharist, for the forgiveness of sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation...?

Isn’t it true that very often we do not thank him……………………………….?