Reflection
Today’s Gospel presents before us a man whose faith amazed Jesus Himself- the Roman centurion. The centurion comes to Jesus with a heavy heart. His servant is suffering terribly. Yet, instead of being overwhelmed by the problem, he turns to Jesus with confidence. When Jesus offers to come to his house, the centurion responds with words that we repeat at every Mass: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant shall be healed.” What made this centurion extraordinary? It was not his position or authority. It was his faith.
There is a beautiful story about Robert Louis Stevenson who was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. He spent much of his life battling illness. One day while lying in bed surrounded by medicine bottles, he looked out the window and exclaimed, “I will never let a row of medicine bottles block my horizon.” Even in sickness, he chose to focus on the sunlight beyond the window rather than the bottles beside his bed. This is exactly what the centurion did. He did not allow the illness of his servant to block the horizon of his faith. He saw the problem, but he saw something greater, the power of Jesus. We are invited to look beyond the obstacles and trust in the power of God.
The centurion also teaches us humility. Though he was a powerful officer, he recognized his need for Jesus.
True faith and true humility always go together. The closer we come to God, the more we realize our dependence on Him.
Let us respond positively to the challenge and invitation of the Centurion, to have a deeper humility that causes us to reach out to others in compassion and care and to have a stronger faith that refuses to prevent any blocks in the horizon of our faith.
