Let us not be caught by surprise!
COMMENTARY on the Gospel reading:
“…What, truly, should one marvel at first in the case of this true nobleman – the centurion: his great faith in the person of the Lord, his moving love for his sick servant, or his overwhelming humility before the Lord's superiority? Rather, he feels the need to acknowledge him for all three!
In any case, the compassionate Lord bows before the wondrous faith of the nobleman, exclaiming with meaning: «not even in Israel have I found such great faith» (ibid., 10). Indeed, the "faithful" Jews, for the most part, do not believe the Lord to be God, even though they have Him among them and continually witness His miracles, whereas the pagan Roman, who has no knowledge of the true God, ultimately experiences the miracle as a result of his faith: «go, and as you have believed, so be it done unto you. And his servant was healed in that hour» (ibid., 13)…”
Sofia Bekri, philologist-theologian
The centurion of the Gospel (Matt. 8:5-13) of the Fourth Sunday of Matthew, despite his many offices and his even greater material goods, is aware of his own weakness and turns to the Lord to give a solution to his "problem."
What, in truth, is his problem? What is it that concerns him and for which he is unable to find a solution? Is it perhaps that he himself, or another member of his family, or even some beloved relative, suffers from some incurable illness, and he turns to the Lord because he heard that He works miracles?
No! The matter that concerns him regards neither himself, nor any other member of his family, nor even a relative of his, but he is pained and grieved by the illness of his servant: «Lord, my servant lies at home paralyzed, grievously tormented» (Matt. 8:6). Indeed, we heard rightly! A mighty Roman master is concerned for the healing of a lowly and worthless servant («res», that is, a "thing," is how the Romans regarded servants, as they did women too)!
This episode, however, conceals still other paradoxes: A most powerful official, with all means at his disposal – financial and social – does not seek out expensive and famous physicians for the healing of his beloved servant, but asks the help of the obscure and despised (by his very own compatriots) Jesus! A Roman ruler of the land of the Jews turns for the solution of his problem to one of his Jewish subjects! An "unbelieving" pagan unreservedly confesses his faith in God and "outshines" the "pious" Jews!
And the most paradoxical thing of all! The centurion does not seek a miracle in order to believe in the Lord; he is from the very outset absolutely certain that the Lord can heal his servant, and indeed from a distance, simply and solely by His word: «Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof; but only say the word and my servant shall be healed» (ibid., 8).
What, truly, should one marvel at first in the case of this true nobleman: his great faith in the person of the Lord, his moving love for his sick servant, or his overwhelming humility before the Lord's superiority? Rather, he feels the need to acknowledge him for all three!
In any case, the compassionate Lord bows before the wondrous faith of the nobleman, exclaiming with meaning: «not even in Israel have I found such great faith» (ibid., 10). Indeed, the "faithful" Jews, for the most part, do not believe the Lord to be God, even though they have Him among them and continually witness His miracles, whereas the pagan Roman, who has no knowledge of the true God, ultimately experiences the miracle as a result of his faith: «go, and as you have believed, so be it done unto you. And his servant was healed in that hour» (ibid., 13).
«Great are the achievements of faith»! But greater still is the power of divine Grace, which in a wondrous manner brings about the salvation of human beings and guides the steps of those who are "far" from the Lord to the knowledge of Him and to the truth, making them, indeed, an example to be imitated by those who are believers in theory.
As for us, the Christians who are "near" the Lord, baptized and graced by the Holy Spirit, let us consider whether, with our lukewarm faith and our nonexistent or even hostile works, we have rendered His grace inactive. Do we too, perhaps, like most of the Jews of the Lord's time, consider that His kingdom belongs to us by right, without, however, living according to God? Or, still worse, have we lost our faith in God altogether and drag others down as well into our slippery decline?
To whichever of the above categories we may belong, if we do not decide, in good time, to set ourselves straight and to live, in this present life, «soberly, righteously and godly» (Titus 2:12), with true faith, like that of the centurion, but also with a genuine Christian life and conduct, then, as the Lord warns, we shall be caught by surprise in the other life, «for many shall come from the east and west, and shall recline in the kingdom of heaven, but the (supposed) children of the kingdom shall be cast out into the outer darkness» (ibid., 12).
It is time, at last, to come to our senses, to break free from our precarious "security" and to work seriously now for our salvation; and then God will surely be our helper!
