On this Veterans Day in the United States, we remember and give thanks to those men and women of our military…who have served, sacrificed, and contributed to our nation. We pray for them as they have sought to protect our nation while maintaining moral and ethical standards—a high bar in a complex and dangerous world.
Today’s Saint, Martin of Tours, was also a soldier who lived long before us in the 4th century, but his transformation from Roman soldier to priest and bishop came as the result of the grace of Baptism that we’ve all received. St. Martin’s adult baptism caused him to rethink what it meant to be a Roman soldier in light of his Christian faith. That led him to be open to answering the call to the priesthood. For Martin, it was realizing he was called to be a soldier for Christ, not for Caesar.
For us, part of being a Christian means facing the reality…that the world around us and even closer to us, whether in our families, circle of friends, work, or school, can bring us into situations and relationships that are in conflict with the teachings of Jesus.
I’m sure right now most of us and maybe all of us if we think about are experiencing this tension to some degree in our lives. In St. Paul’s letter to Titus, we discover the answer to all conflicts…and that is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit which gives us new life, which is richly poured out through Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Paul reminds his listeners that before receiving the Holy Spirit, they were once foolish, disobedient, slaves to desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hating themselves and one another. He tells them and us of the power of the grace of God to help us to be transformed in how we think, speak, and act in our daily lives, in each of our vocations.
Our world, our nation, and local communities and families have this great potential to be transformed by the grace of God…however, we must use the faith that God has given us. That takes intention. Given all that swirls around us externally and within, it’s easy to forget the gift of faith and to use it.
Today’s Gospel story of Jesus healing the ten men with leprosy reminds us of this reality. All ten were healed as they set out to report to the priest what had happened, but only one realized he had been healed. Why did he, the Samaritan, and not the others recognize this? Perhaps the others didn’t fully believe they would be healed, were still filled with doubt, or were already thinking about what would come next, preventing them from fully recognizing the healing power of Jesus.
That can happen to us at times too. We have doubts, we are distracted, and have fears. But the Samaritan had the presence of mind to perceive the healing, and so he returned to its source, Jesus, glorifying God, and fell at Jesus’ knees, and thanked Him.
The lesson the Samaritan learned and had confirmed by Jesus… is that his faith had saved him. A faith that has been given to St. Martin of Tours, St. Paul, the Samaritan, each of us, and countless people throughout time.
A faith that Jesus transforms our lives…if we place our trust in Him.