“Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.” – Matthew 8:7

I must admit I have the S.O.S. syndrome. The “Same Old Sins” syndrome. Many times, I would catch myself going to confession bearing not new sins, but old, repeated ones. And each time, I would feel guilty because I know I should have stopped myself from doing them, but I had failed again. I ask myself, “Should I even dare say sorry to God after all these? Is my sorry sincere? Am I sure that I won’t do it anymore?”

       But I know that these are all insults to God’s immense love for me. Who am I to doubt God’s mercy and forgiveness? Once again, I am reassured that my sins are a tiny speck compared to the healing and transforming love of God! It is by this reassurance that I humbly ask for God’s pardon through confession.

       I know that I will never be worthy of God’s love. But the beauty of His love is that He makes you worthy. He forgives you so that you forgive yourself. He transforms your Same Old Sins because He is the Savior of Souls. The centurion knew that, too. He was not worthy of God’s healing. But because of his faith, Jesus entered his life and changed him forever! Migs Ramirez (migoy3@gmail.com)

Dear Jesus, as we prepare for Your birth into the world, may You also be born in my heart. Help me make myself worthy of Your coming, so that I may enjoy Your presence fully. Amen.

Blessed Rafael Chylinski, pray for us.

Advent is a time to prepare ourselves to welcome the coming of the Christ Child in our midst. It is a time to reflect on a year gone by and ask ourselves whether we have fulfilled our New Year’s resolutions or not. As we prepare for Christmas, let us prepare our hearts to recommit ourselves to following Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Let us never forget His humility in coming among us as a child.

2 On that day, the branch of the Lord will be luster and glory, and the fruit of the earth will be honor and splendor for the survivors of Israel. 3 He who remains in Zion and he who is left in Jerusalem will be called holy: every one marked down for life in Jerusalem. 4 When the Lord washes away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purges Jerusalem’s blood from her midst with a blast of searing judgment, 5 then will the Lord create, over the whole site of Mount Zion and over her place of assembly, a smoking cloud by day and a light of flaming fire by night. 6 For  over all, his glory will be shelter and protection shade from the parching heat of day, refuge and cover from storm and rain.

1 I rejoiced because they said to me, “We will go up to the house of the Lord.” 2 And now we have set foot within your gates, O Jerusalem. (R) 3 Jerusalem, built as a city with compact unity. 4 To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the  Lord. (R) According to the decree for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. 5 In it are set up judgment seats, seats for the house of David. (R) 6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! May those who love you prosper! 7 May peace be within your walls, prosperity in your buildings. (R) 8 Because of my relatives and friends I will say, “Peace be within you!” 9 Because of the house of the Lord, our God, I will pray for your good. (R)

The centurion knows the power of the word of a person in authority. He is a member of the police or army that is led by a person — he believes he is talking to the Son of God — how much more powerful will be His word or command! This is an example of the type of faith we should seek to develop in our lives — a faith that trusts in the transformative power of the Word of God.

Come and save us, Lord our God; let your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

5 When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion approached him and appealed to him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully.” 7 He said to him, “I will come and cure him.” 8 The centurion said in reply, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. 9 For I too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven.”

think:  As we prepare for Christmas, let us prepare our hearts to recommit ourselves to following Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Psalm 141-145

“Coming Under My Roof”

Again, we have a phrase that features prominently in the new translation of the Mass. The centurion refers to Jesus coming to visit his house in terms of “coming under his roof.” This phrase is an interesting one as the focal point of the text here is all about authority — by whom and how it is exercised. The centurion knows that superiors give orders to their rank and file members, who are expected to obey the former. His expression of belief in Jesus is in these terms, when he tells Jesus that all he needs to hear is Jesus’ “word” and that will be sufficient for him. He does not need to have Jesus come to his home and to pronounce healing in the presence of his sick child.

       Jesus commends his faith, saying that it is deeper than any other he has found in Israel. This is quite a compliment. The other side of the title phrase is that it can also be a reference to authority in itself. That is, we sometimes refer to people who come under our authority as “under our roof.” In this sense, the roof is a symbol of superior authority and perhaps what the centurion was also implying was that he recognized that the authority of Jesus was far greater than his and, thus, it was highly unnecessary and even inappropriate for Jesus to bother Himself with a journey to his house.

       Either way, the faith and belief of the centurion in the authority of Jesus to heal and command is evident. It is this that we should focus on when considering this event in Jesus’ life from the standpoint of discipleship. What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? It means “coming under the roof” of His authority. It means believing in His Word once it is spoken. It means trusting that the mix of love and authority with which Jesus ministers is not just true for how He relates to us, but is also the model for how we should relate to others. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: How do you view people of authority in your life? Do you fight against them or work with them?

Holy Spirit, help me to entrust my life to the authority of Jesus’ Word and never allow me to lose hope in it. May I always experience His Word as a word of love.