Ave Maria Meditations
We know so well the gospel account of the 10 lepers made clean, only one of who returns to thank Christ. How much is revealed in this instance of the human heart of Christ and the human soul of Christ. He let us know that he was hurt by ingratitude: “Were not 10 made clean? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”
We can say that Christ’s memory was assaulted by the sorrow evoked in him by the ingratitude of the nine but he chose not to “remember” after that one revelatory cry of this human heart, surely enough to break the ungrateful hearts of us all. He let us know how He felt and about the struggle with the hurt of this human heart; but then he made a human decision not to “remember” (the hurt). Instead he chose to remember that one was grateful.
We find decisions like that quite difficult sometimes. It is so easy to remember the hurt, the misunderstanding, so tempting to rehearse to ourselves the ingratitudes. Christ elected to remember what what would humanly enable Him to go on doing good. He did not allow His memory do enfeeble His soul but humanly disciplined His human mind to serve His human soul.
And there was Peter, with saint not quite yet prefixed to his name. When Jesus after his resurrection asked the famous triple question, was He not telling us that what He would choose to remember about Peter? He gave his poor, weak, but so loving disciple, Peter, the opportunity to present him with what He would choose to remember. Jesus could have remembered only the denials. He chose to remember the love, and gave us our first pope.
+Sr. Mary Frances PCC
