I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

 Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.  And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.  So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue."  Then Jesus went with them.  And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.  Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You.  But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me.  And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"  And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.

Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd.  And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow.  And a large crowd from the city was with her.  When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."  Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still.  And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  So he who was dead sat up and began to speak.  And He presented him to his mother.  Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and "God has visited His people." 

- Luke 7:1-17

In recent readings, Jesus has been preaching what is known as the Sermon on the Plain.  For the earlier parts of the sermon, see readings of Friday and Saturday.  Yesterday, we read the conclusion of the sermon, which began with a parable: "Can the blind lead the blind?  Will they not both fall into the ditch?  A disciple is not  above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.  And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye?  Hypocrite!  First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother's eye.  For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.  For every tree is known by its own fruit.  For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil.  For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.  But why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things which I say?  Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like:  He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock.  And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against the house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.  But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell.  And the ruin of that house was great."

 Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.  And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.  So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue."  Then Jesus went with them.  And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.  Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You.  But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me.  And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"  And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.  My study bible says that this centurion, a Roman Gentile, is unusual in his devotion to the Jews.  So much so, that the community speaks for him as he has 'done' for the community in "loving our nation" and building a synagogue for the people.  Beyond these recommendations by the elders of the community aren't the only factors that commend this centurion, a commander of a squad of 100 soldiers.  We see his compassion in his care for his servant, his love for God and God's people, and also his remarkable humility expressed to Jesus.  In addition to all these is his extraordinary "great faith," so remarked upon by Jesus.  It's important to note that this man's faith is complimented and augmented by his own experience and understanding of authority. 

Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd.  And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow.  And a large crowd from the city was with her.  When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."  Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still.  And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  So he who was dead sat up and began to speak.  And He presented him to his mother.  Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and "God has visited His people."  There are three resurrections performed by Christ as reported in the Gospels.  This one, that of Jairus' daughter (also reported by Luke, in 8:41-56), and the resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:1-44).  My study bible says they confirm the promise given to the prophet Ezekiel that God will one day open the graves and raise all the dead (Ezekiel 37:1-14).  There are many, it says, who've exercised authority over the living.  But only the Son of God "has power over both the living and the dead" (from the Orthodox funeral service).  Christ expresses power even through His word alone (John 11:43).  Here He also touched the coffin to show that His very body is life-giving, something we've also seen in those who seek to touch Him and the seeming connection it makes to release power in Luke's Gospel (see 6:19, 8:46).  St. Ambrose of Milan comments that this is a prefiguring of Christ's own Resurrection.  As Mary would weep for Jesus at the Cross, yet her tears also would be turned to joy by the Resurrection.  A widow's only son in this story is raised from the dead, putting an end to her weeping.

Compassion features strongly in today's stories from the Gospel reading.  Luke's Gospel is the gospel of the Divine Physician; it shouldn't surprise us that compassion plays such a strong role in the stories about Christ.  But here we have two stories that are rather special and highly touching.  The centurion is a splendid figure of good leadership.  He's not just a man in authority, but also a commander of soldiers of an occupying force which is generally hated by the Jews.  But this man is beloved.  He cares for the people as a kind of adoptive "father," building a synagogue and showing love for the nation.   The elders gladly come to Christ to recommend the centurion to Him.  Most clearly and strikingly, the centurion shows great humility before Christ; his authority is not vested in sheer military power.  But what is really striking is that it is his authority and familiarity with its use that gives him the greatest expression of faith in Christ.  And that teaches us something very important:  although the Gospels seemingly contrast power, might, and wealth with life in the Kingdom (see, for example, this reading of "woes"  from the Sermon on the Plain), in this man faith transfigures all of those things and in fact gives him greater depth than would be possible otherwise.  Jesus says, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"  Here, it is not the people who marvel at Christ (as is frequently found in the Gospels).  Rather, it is Christ who marvels.  This is a striking example of what faith does in our lives.   It transfigures.  It takes whatever we have, whoever we are, whatever we've experienced, and turns all toward service in a life of faith.  There is no condemnation here for this man's role as centurion or member of an occupying force.  There is only praise for him, a splendid and great example of faith.  In the story of the widow's son, Jesus' compassion is also on display.  His is a kind of compassionate authority which we can see mirrored in the centurion.  The widow has her son returned to her, just as a beloved servant is returned to the centurion.  We can consider that her son is the most priceless, precious thing in her life.  Jesus' compassion, as we see elsewhere (for example, His response to Mary's weeping at the raising of Lazarus), is sparked when He sees the widow weep.    So we see a consistent sense of compassion in our Lord, and compassion also as prized in those with great faith as well as authority, like the centurion.  It gives us a sense of power in which the fullness of a human being with real authority is in that truth of compassion, a willingness to serve what is best for community, and the humility that goes along with that.  Perhaps more deeply and truly, the whole story of Christ as God Incarnate is to give us the message that God is not a detached, remote being, nor a harshly punishing one, but that God knows our suffering and cares for our suffering.  On the Cross He will truly and deeply share in that suffering.  There can be no doubt of these things.  It is the one thing we can surely take with us from the stories of the Gospels.  What we have left to ask then is the question of why, in light of this mission and ministry in the world, there is suffering in the world.  It seems we, too, are asked to participate in this mission and share in it with Him.  Christ's ministry, and His taking on our suffering on the Cross, both seem to suggest He is here to take away our pain and suffering, to heal.  But more deeply, the Cross also transfigures our suffering.  When we meet life as He did, suffering takes on meaning and mission:  are we going to serve God in doing so, or take on the abuse and affliction of the world as our way, the limitation of what we believe in?  Christ's compassion teaches us about the true persona of God, and He invites us to be like the centurion, an example of faith.  If we participate and share in Christ's mission, whatever it is we know of the world or have experienced of it can be transfigured by faith, put to purpose, used with compassion, with a common mission of helping to bring God's love into the world, being the light that reflects God's light, as Christ asks of us (Matthew 5:16).   In Luke's Gospel, Jesus will use this saying about our own light as that which may illumine both how we see and therefore how we live in the world (Luke 11:33-36).  The real question of suffering in the world is one that asks us for our compassion, and so much more.  It asks us to choose for Him, to participate in His mission with all that we are and have, to place our faith in that cause and His commands, His way, as does the centurion.  And that is a great purpose indeed.  Its gift to us is Resurrection, not only in its absolute sense, but in every moment of transcendence He brings to our suffering.