Being Thankful As a Way of Life

HOMILY: Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Luke 17:11-19 

9 October 2022

Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA

One of the first lessons we learned as children is the importance of saying ‘Thank You!’ Kahit paslit na di pa halos nakakapagsalita, pag may tinanggap que kendi lang o mamahaling laruan tinuturuang magpasalamat. “What do you say?” “Anong sasabihin kay Ninang?” At hindi titigilan hangga’t di masabi ng bata ang “thank you po.” 

Today we are reminded to be grateful to God and to express our gratitude to Him who has given us so much. Gratitude is a virtue we all are encouraged to cultivate as Christians throughout our lives. We recall St. Paul’s words to the Early Christians: “In every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) Be thankful always! 

It is so easy to be grateful when we get what we ask for. Sa Unang Pagbasa, si Naaman ay desperadong-desperado na siya ay gumaling sa sakit na ketong. If we read the whole story, we see Naaman brought with him a fortune in gold, silver and expensive clothing because he was willing to pay a high price for a cure! When he was healed, he offered these gifts in gratitude to Elisha. Ngunit ito’y tinanggihan ng propeta dahil di naman siya ang nakapagpagaling kay Naaman, kundi ang Panginoong Diyos. Humingi si Naaman ng lupa ng Israel upang maiuwi niya sa Syria pampagawa ng altar kung saan sasambahin niya ang kinikilala na niyang nag-iisang tunay na Panginoon. We can be like that too, when we receive something, we pray for so fervently — agad-agad may pa-thanksgiving mass at malaki-laki ang iaambag sa simbahan. Di ba? Tiyak pasasalamatan si Lord pag gumaling ang isang maysakit, nakapasa ang anak sa exams, nakuha ang inaasam na promotion sa trabaho, o kaya nakahanap din ng mapapangasawa kahit kwarenta na. 😄 

Other times, God gives us unexpected blessings. In the gospel story, the 10 lepers approached Jesus but He did not heal them right away. Bagaman sila ay inutusang “pumunta sa mga pari.”  (In those days, leprosy rendered a person unclean and only a priest could officially declare them healed or clean enough to assimilate back in society.) Siguro nagtaka yung sampu, kung bakit sila pinapunta sa pari. Baka nagmaktol pa nga yung iba at natakot na maalipusta sila muli pero nagpunta pa din sila. And on their way, they were surprised to discover they had been healed!  Ang masaklap, iisa lang ang nagmadaling bumalik kay Kristo upang magpasalamat.  Minsan ganyan din tayo. Nawawalan tayo ng loob pag medyo matagal bago sagutin ng Diyos ang ating panalangin. We forget that God blesses us in His time. Hindi tayo pwedeng magdikta sa Diyos. God knows the best time to dispense of His graces. Kinakailangan nating magpakumbaba, maghintay at magtiyaga. When the grace finally arrives or if we get something better, ano ang reaksyon natin? Tatakbo din ba tayo pabalik kay Kristo upang magpasalamat? Do we drop to our knees in prayer to thank the Lord? Or do we simply say:  “It’s about time! Hay salamat!” and then move on?  Baka naman feeling natin, deserve naman talaga natin yung grasya at pinagdamutan lang tayo ni Lord sa pagpapahintay sa atin? Entitled!  

In these instances, we receive so it’s easy to be grateful. However, how can we say thank you even if things don’t go our way or when we don’t get what we pray for? Noong kasagsagan ng COVID, may taga-Sampaloc na lumapit sa iba’t ibang tanggapan ng gobyerno upang makiusap na magpadala ng ambulansya sa Pangasinan upang sunduin ang kanyang inang nasa critical condition. Walang kapasidad ang clinic na pinagdalhan sa nanay niya at puno ang ibang malapit na ospital. Kinailangan siyang madala sa ospital sa Maynila. Pray sila ng pray. Friends and family were praying with them. They were willing to do anything, even sell their possessions, just to give their mom a second chance at life. Walang naibigay na ambulansya. Namatay ang nanay nila. They were devastated but they thanked the Lord for giving them a mother like her. Kahit masakit, tinanggap nilang panahon na ng mommy nilang bumalik sa Maykapal. Kung sa atin nangyari yan, makakapagpasalamat ba tayo? 

There is a value to having an attitude of gratitude.  Jesus highlights this as He calls out the ingratitude of the other nine lepers saying, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” (Luke 17:17-18) First of all, gratitude is the acknowledgement of God’s action on our behalf. It is the realisation that all we have are gifts from God who bestows on us His blessings. Everything we have is by the grace of God. Kailangan nating magpasalamat sa Diyos dahil umaasa tayo sa Kanya. Minsan kasi nakikita lang natin kung ano yung wala tayo. Kung titingnan natin kung ano ang meron tayo na bigay ng Diyos, di natin maipagkakailang napakarami nating dapat ipagpasalamat. 

Secondly, thanksgiving draws us out of ourselves and toward another. Being grateful helps us forget ourselves and teaches us to think of others. Gratitude moves us out of our tendency for “self-absorption”.  Kung mayroon kang tinanggap, ibig sabihin, may nagbigay. There is an interconnectedness. God is the giver of grace and mercy and we receive. We give glory and praise to God. In our families and communities, we all contribute something out of our talents and gifts. (Cooperation rather than competition.) We give of ourselves and our possessions, because others are in need of what we have. Gratitude helps us to be self-aware of what we have received in abundance and to be sensitive to those who have less of it and need our help.

Finally, thanksgiving is a way of life! Every day we are blessed with the miracle of life. Every day we wake up we should make it a habit to thank God for the gift of a new day. In Greek, they say Ευχαριστώ efkharisto to say, thank you. It is the root of the word eucharist, which highlights the aspect of “thanksgiving ” in our celebration of the mass. We are grateful for the gift of our salvation in Christ and for the continuous outpouring of God’s blessings in our life. Notice that at every Eucharistic celebration we say, “Let us give thanks to the Lord our God’, and we declare it to be right and just (the proper thing to do).  We acknowledge that there is so much in life to be thankful for! Tandaan. Ang misa ay isang paraan ng pagpapahayag ng ating pasasalamat sa Diyos!

We are invited to remember three (3) things. First, God is the source of all graces and blessings and He has been very generous with us. Second, we have all received abundantly from the Lord in different capacities. Iba-iba ang natanggap nating kakayahan, talento, yaman, at oportunidad upang matuto tayong magbahagi at magtulungan. And most importantly, we need to continuously thank the Lord even when we do not understand His decisions or His silence. God has a grand plan and each of us has a part that He will reveal at the right time. Patuloy lang tayong magtiwala sa pagmamahal ng ating Diyos Ama dahil tanging kabutihan natin ang hangad Niya.