The Vision of Gratitude

by Fr Earl Allyson Valdez

Reflection  for the Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

At times, the way we thank each other becomes too common, that we take for granted the value of gratitude, reduced to becoming a way of exchanging pleasantries. However, if we look at it closely, there’s something that changes in us whenever we come to appreciate things, even in what we consider as “thankless” situations. 

If we look at it carefully, gratitude is closely related to attention, for it enables us to see our present situation more clearly with a new perspective. Take for example the moments in which we sometimes wished we had the kind of life that we have dreamed of, or the best things in life that we ever wanted for ourselves. When we grumble about them, we focus more on what we do not have; however, when somebody reminds us to be grateful for what we have, we suddenly change a shift in perspective. We appreciate what we have, and strive for what we need (and not just want) to have.

In a way, therefore, Cicero may perhaps be right in saying that gratitude may as well be the parent of all virtues, for it orients our vision to what it should see: the present and not just the absent, and what we could genuinely hope for and not just what we only desire. Gratitude directs us to the real, and enables us to appreciate it. 

This is what this Sunday’s readings highlight. In the first reading, we see Naaman’s gratitude over having been healed by the Lord by the instruction of the Prophet Elisha, which in turn parallels the healing brought by Our Lord to the ten lepers, one of whom returned to show gratitude. In both cases, it became the moment of clarity and truth for them. Due to their experience of being healed and touched by God, they were able to see the value of their lives, enough to return to the truth that they have seen. It was that overwhelming sense of gratitude that brought them to faith and to embrace the truth that it gives. 

These narratives remind and call us toward a way of life filled with and identified with gratitude. It is easy that this is what St. Paul, among others, bears in his life, for even in the moments of great trial and suffering, he remains thankful that He is with Christ and He has Christ in these moments. The same then, goes for us, in every moment and experience we go through.

Even in the most wounded and most difficult moments of our lives, it is gratitude that allows us to see that it is possible to overcome these moments. 

Even in the most challenging moments where change is needed, a sense of gratitude grants us the way toward reforming ourselves, our communities, and our systems. 

Even in the moments that we can consider “thankless,” gratitude allows us to see the real situation and respond accordingly, instead of just running away from them, trivializing them, or sensationalizing them. Gratitude for what we have in this situation, tells us that even in these difficult situations we still have something with which we can change it and turn it for the better. 

And finally, for us who believe, gratitude enables us to see Our Lord accompanying us in everything that we face, granting not what we want but what we need, challenging us to go the extra mile and drawing us closer to the Lord’s will. We ask therefore, for the grace of becoming grateful for the Lord and all that He has given us, granting us a renewed vision of the world and ourselves, allowing us to see that we have been given so much, and that we are also called to be the reason for others to be grateful to the Lord as well.

Do we receive this grace and cultivate gratitude in our hearts and minds? What are the things that we have yet to be thankful for and appreciate? How does it spur us to action that leads to the Lord’s will in our lives?