The Catholic Calendar for February 28, 2005
Monday of the Third Week of Lent

Scripture from Today's Liturgy of the Word:
2 Kings 5:1-15
Psalm 42:2-3; 43:3-4
Luke 4:24-30

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

Today's First Reading is a wonderful story that illustrates for me one of the ways God works to reveal His holiness. It seems that if we read carefully, we get a sense that the seeds for Naaman's conversion were carefully laid and took time and people to help bring them to fullness.

The Israelite child, a child of faith, passes on to her mistress a word about the power of the Holy One of Israel; she in turn passes it on to her afflicted husband, Naaman, who passes it on to his king the King of Syria. The king of Syria then provides Naaman with a letter of introduction to the King of Israel, who in turn sends Naaman to the prophet Elisha, who doesn't meet directly with Naaman, but instead sends a messenger.

In all these cases there was a time for acceptance and rejection of the hoped-for power to cure; and indeed Naaman almost "rejected the cure" except for the encouragement of yet others - his servants who encouraged him to do as Elisha's messenger had instructed.

The outcome is remarkable! Naaman is cured and proclaims that "there is no God in all the earth except in Israel."

So what's the lesson? For me, it is to pass along the Good News, not knowing on whose ears it will fall and when in God's time and way it will bear fruit.

- Donna Raye Nelson, OCDS
(drn3rd at hotmail dot com)

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posted by joachim at 6:28 AM