Metropolitan Ioïl (Frangkakos) of Edessa, Pella, and Almopia
‘Go, and let it be done to you as you have believed’.
Today’s Gospel reading describes a moving incident. A Roman officer came and asked the Lord to heal his servant: ‘My servant is lying at home paralyzed, in great distress’ (Matth. 8, 6). The dialogue which unfolded between Jesus and the centurion is wonderful and worthy of our attention. Let’s look in more detail at the features of this miracle.
The person of the centurion
Initially, he sent other people to approach Christ: ‘he sent elders of the Jews to him’ (Luke, 7, 3). Thereafter, when the path to Jesus had been prepared to some extent, he went to see him in person (Matth. 8, 5). This is an indication that he was treating the healing of his servant as a serious matter. It’s worth noting that his concern wasn’t for some relative of his, but for his servant. It’s well-known that, at that time, servants were of little to no importance. The…
