“As he (Jesus) was entering a village, ten lepers met him.” (Luke 17,12) In our experience of today’s culture we do not encounter many people that display signs of leprosy or Hansen’s disease as the medical field would name it. Perhaps in Jesus’ time the disease of leprosy was not always Hansen’s disease either. Leprosy could be any open sore on the skin that made a person unclean and unable to participate in Jewish cultic practices. A person that was exhibiting an open wound soon found themselves on the fringes of society, separated from others, isolated from important relationships, with only other wounded people to share their plight. We may not have a lot of people with the medical condition of leprosy today but we certainly have a great number of people who carry open wounds that cause them to feel alone and isolated in their daily lives. We live in a wounded world. The only love that many people know today is a wounded love. So many people have been wounded in love — disappointed, betrayed, abandoned or abused. The wounds of love that we carry often have not been healed. The pain of these wounds reaches deep within us and goes far beyond the original wounding. These wounds have festered and become infected with hatred, resentment, bitterness and displaced anger. As long as we carry these wounds we are unavailable for healthy relationships with others. We soon find ourselves alone, withdrawn and isolated from others. We may indeed be toxic to others and experience people avoiding relationship with us.

As Jesus is traveling toward Jerusalem, he meets wounded humanity. Ten lepers meet him. Ten is often a significant number in the bible, signifying perfection, completeness and authority. Jesus meets a humanity that is completely wounded and living under the oppressive authority of their past, unhealed and open wounds. These wounded people are living under the tyranny of their wounded nature. They are no longer free to enter into healthy and holy relationships with others. This wounded humanity cries out to Jesus for mercy. In his mercy and love, Jesus is able to heal the visible wounds of a wounded humanity through cultic reconciliation as he instructs the wounded people to go and show themselves to the priests. Certainly the sacrament of confession and reconciliation is able to address the original wounds caused by sin. The sacramental experience of God’s mercy and love is the beginning of a new life of freedom. “As they were going they were cleansed.” (Luke 17,14) The love of a merciful God is able to heal and cleanse those who are wounded by love and offer them a new life. However, in our gospel story we see that only one person experiences complete healing of his wounded nature.

Thanksgiving is an important part of restoring our hearts to wholeness again. Giving thanks, acknowledging the gift and grace of God’s love, allows us the freedom to love again without fear. Our thanksgiving adds nothing to God’s greatness but it helps us to grow in grace. Our thanksgiving allows us to say “yes” again to love and to trust in the goodness of love again. Thanksgiving cleanses our hearts and prepares them to be a suitable dwelling place for love again. “Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, for his mercy endures forever!” (Psalm 107,1)