“Gratitude"
Luke 17:11-19
Giving thanks can be complicated. At my last call, one person would respond to my thank-you notes by sending me a thank-you note for the thank-you note I had sent. Should I have written her a "You are welcome for thanking me for my thank you" note? My head hurts just thinking about that.😊 It can be complicated in some circumstances to know how to thank someone. In other cases, giving thanks seems relatively straightforward. Take this lesson from Jesus, for example.
Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem and approaches a village on the border of Samaria and Galilee. We hear of a group of ten lepers who came to Jesus. What do we know about lepers from scripture? Lepers kept distant from non-lepers. They formed their own colonies and positioned themselves in areas of traffic to make appeals to charity. They knew to keep their distance due to their disease because their skin disease was considered unclean, making them unclean and outside of society. They were even supposed to call out "Unclean" regularly to ensure those around them stayed safely away. However, as Jesus comes by, rather than calling out "unclean," they instead cry out, "Jesus, Master-epistata epistata,in Greek, meaning Master Teacher, have mercy upon us!" Somehow, the lepers had heard about Jesus. The stories of his healing people from their infirmities put hope in their hearts. Perhaps they could become part of society again- returning to worship at the temple, returning to their families, reclaiming their lives. So, they broke the societal norms and asked for Jesus' mercy.
Jesus tells them to go and show themselves to the priest. Showing themselves to a priest after being healed was part of the law (Lev. 14:2-32). I guess that their initial reaction was one of confusion. Why go to the priests when they still had the disease? Yet they followed Jesus' instructions, and on the way, they were healed. Can you imagine their excitement in going to the priests and receiving a clean bill of health, meaning they could reclaim their lives?
Yet, only one of them returned to give thanks to Jesus. Why was this? Perhaps in their excitement, they all ran to their families of origin to share the miraculous news. Theologian Diana Butler Bass says that men, in particular, have difficulty expressing gratitude to others. In her recent book, Grateful, she writes, "It is a lot harder for men than women to feel grateful, or even admit when they feel it, due to gratitude being seen as a more feminine, tender emotion. In addition, men found it difficult to be grateful because of the expectations of male self-reliance." Whatever the reason, the excitement of being healed or claiming their self-reliance, 9 left the temple and moved on. One came back to express his gratitude. He was a Samaritan, and that was a problem for many in Jewish society. Samaritans were enemies.
The region of Samaria, along with Galilee to the north, had once comprised the northern Israelite tribes who separated from Judah in the 10th century BC to establish a rival monarchy. Two centuries later, these northern tribes were conquered by the Assyrian empire, which transported distant Mesopotamian peoples into the region, resulting in centuries of intermarriage. From a Judean perspective, these developments led to ethnic compromising of the already alienated branches of Jacob's family tree. Over time, Samaritans developed their own religious traditions, emphasizing devotion to the Torah and affiliation with the sanctuary on Mt. Gerizim.
By the 2nd century BC, much of Galilee converted to Judaism, meaning (among other things) that it recognized the Jerusalem temple as the proper place of cultic worship. This left the middle region of Samaria somewhat isolated between two Jerusalem-affiliated populations. In 128 BCE, the rivalry turned especially violent when Judeans destroyed the Samaritan sanctuary on Mt. Gerizim. In Jesus' day, hostility toward Samaritans was still strong enough that Galilean pilgrims often bypassed Samaria on their way to Jerusalem, even though it added considerable time to the journey.
In Jesus' interactions with others or in the parables he shares, the hero of the story is often unexpected. Of all the lepers who could have come back to express his gratitude, it is a Samaritan who does the right thing. It is also interesting to consider that, apparently, having a disease trumped one's ethnic heritage. This Samaritan leper was just part of the colony, along with other Jewish ones. He is the example we are called to follow- to thank God for the blessings we are given. The Samaritan leper expresses gratitude for being healed, returns to the source of that blessing, and says, "Thank you."
As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, we are reminded that this is one day out of 365 to be thankful. That is, unless you are an indigenous person. Thanksgiving is a complex holiday that all Americans should approach with sensitivity. So, I approach this day in two ways- mindful of how difficult this holiday is for many people and that, as a Christian, I am called to work for justice for all people. Yet this is also a time to be mindful of the need to thank God for the many blessings in my life.
So, this morning, we will spend some time considering how to have gratitude for how God has blessed us, and not just one day out of 365, but constantly and consistently.
Let's begin with this word, Gratitude, defined as "Thankfulness" in most dictionaries. Butler Bass believes that being thankful for something or someone is almost always connected to our emotions and that we feel gratitude. Some event transpires, and we feel gratitude for a good outcome.
Experiences of gratitude can combine several complex emotions. Bass writes, "You might feel thankful it did not rain during your beach weekend. Those are feelings of appreciation and enjoyment. Feeling grateful for a new job might be caused by your last job being so awful that you could not bear another moment and might be thankful to have escaped." To continue her example- Seeing an excellent musical performance can make one feel immense joy connected to gratefulness for the musician playing the music. An example of this for me personally happened last summer, when Susan, Paula, and I saw the great progressive rock band Kansas at the Jackson County Fair. I felt immense joy and thankfulness, hearing some of the music I love live played so perfectly! I kept thanking God for the gift of music as we left the arena.
The key for today and every day that follows is to be grateful and to remember to thank God. American Author Alice Walker wrote, "Thank you is the best prayer that anyone could say. I say that one a lot. Thank you expresses extreme gratitude, humility, and understanding."
Theologian Anne Lamott, whose excellent book on the art of prayer, Help, Thanks, Wow, wrote, "Gratitude runs the gamut from shaking your head and saying, 'Thanks, wow I appreciate it so much' for continued health, or a good day at work, or the first blooms of daisies in the public park, to saying, 'Thanks, that is a relief,' when it isn't the transmission, or an abscess, or an audit from the IRS."
However, there are difficulties in our lives, and in such times, being grateful can be a stretch. The diagnosis is not good. A beloved spouse or child dies, someone deeply trusted succumbs to temptation, war rages before us, and we see innocent people slaughtered; everything seems to be falling apart all at once. Lamott responds, "And yet, the world keeps on spinning, and in our grief, rage, and fear, a few people keep on living and showing up. It's all motion and stasis, change and stagnation. Awful stuff happens, and beautiful stuff happens, and it's all part of the big picture." We can still find people and outcomes, memories and emotions to give thanks for, even in such times.
So, may we follow the example of the Samaritan leper in today's story in both good times and bad, remembering to thank God for those blessings we have received. (Exercise- Gratitude poster- Come up and write some basic things you are thankful to God for. Like the Leper who returned and gave thanks, we can remember what we are grateful for and say thanks to God. We will take a picture of the poster, send it out on a group email to our church family, and encourage you to read it on TG day. )
Alleluia. Amen.
Benediction- "Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayers. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good." Maya Angelou
