When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith..." Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment. – St. Matthew 8:5-10, 13
As an Anglo-Catholic this passage carries great significance for me. In those moments just before the Blessed Sacrament is presented to the people with words spoken by St. John Baptist, those who intend to receive the Holy Communion pray the Centurion's Prayer three times, beating their breasts. “Lord I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof, but speak the word only and my soul shall be healed.”
My meditation on this passage, however, is not intended to be (directly) sacramental in focus. Rather, I call our attention to the theme of Christ's divinity as shown through the exercise of divine authority.
This passage is remarkable because of the faith of the centurion. By faith, I do not mean hope (which is quite different) or reliance upon God (though, this aspect is present). The centurion's faith is the confession of Jesus' divinity. How do we arrive at this conclusion? Israel had seen prophets and miracle workers in the past, and the Jews tended to treat Jesus in that manner. Thus, this Gentile comes to Jesus seeking a miracle, and Jesus responds in the way you might expect a prophet or a miracle worker would, “Shall I come and heal him?”
We would expect this godless Gentile to say 'yes,' and then Jesus would pray over the sick man. Instead, the centurion says, “No, I'm not worthy. Just give the order and it will be done.” There is a striking contrast between a prophet praying for God to heal someone, and God himself commanding a healing and not even being physically present with the one who is ill. This centurion recognized that Jesus was in fact God, believed in his heart, and asked for the healing with trust (faith) that God would answer his prayer. And Jesus says, "Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would."
As we approach the season of preparation that anticipates the Easter Feast, consider the faith of the centurion. Offer your own sin-sick body to God saying, “I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof, but speak the word only and my soul shall be healed. I believe you are the Christ the son of the living God. My Lord and my God, thou dost not forsake us.”
Pax Christi,
Stephen Hilgendorf
The prophet here is the Centurion. What strikes me when I read this passage along with your reflection Stephen, is that it is the Centurion, an outsider, not a Jew, not an Israelite, not a disciples who recognises Christ for who He is, God incarnate. Those who should know, the Jewish religious leaders are perplexed by who Jesus is. They struggle and strive to fit Him into their own categories. Of course God uses our language, images etc. to convey Himself to us, but the Centurion recognises that Jesus is not a prophet, not a miracle or a magician but indeed God. It takes an outsider to point out to those gathered that God is amongst them. God had been preparing the Israelites for their entire history, in their election, their Law, their Prophets, that the culmination would be God amongst men. For those people present at this scene, a Gentile spoke the Word. It is a reminder to us that part of our calling is to be a witness to Israel, so that one day she may believe as well.
ReplyDeleteThankyou for the post Stephen.
Peace and Blessings.