Faith Requires Humility - Fr. Gregory - July 2, 2023

Today’s Gospel reading, Matthew 8:5-13, tells the story of Jesus’ miraculous healing of the centurion’s servant. Saint Matthew tells us that Jesus “marveled” at the faith of the centurion. Father Gregory explains that Jesus was amazed at the centurion’s faith for two reasons: the centurion’s humility; and his firm conviction that all things are possible for God. Unlike the Jewish people, to whom the True God had revealed himself, the centurion, a Roman officer with great worldly authority, recognized Jesus’ power as greater than his own. He humbled himself before the Savior of the World, and with true faith and confidence in the power of God he asked Christ to do the humanly impossible; to heal his servant with only a word. Jesus, in His great mercy, granted his request. May we, Christ’s Church, open our hearts and souls to recognize the greatness of the one true God and emulate the centurion, humbling ourselves before Christ and trusting in God’s power to do all things, even the “impossible.”