1-3
Naaman was general of the army under the king of Aram. He was important to his master, who held him in the highest esteem
because it was by him that God had given victory to Aram: a truly great man,
but afflicted with leprosy. It so happened that Aram, on one of its raiding expeditions against Israel, captured a young girl
who became a maid to Naaman's wife. One day she said to her mistress, "Oh, if only my master could meet the prophet of Samaria,
he would be healed of his skin disease."
4 Naaman went straight to his
master and reported what the girl from Israel had said.
5 "Well then, go," said the
king of Aram. "And I'll send a letter of introduction to the king of Israel."
So he went off, taking with him about 750 pounds of
silver, 150 pounds of gold, and ten sets of clothes.
6 Naaman delivered the letter
to the king of Israel. The letter read, "When you get this letter, you'll know that I've personally sent my servant Naaman
to you; heal him of his leprosy."
7 When the king of Israel read
the letter, he was terribly upset, ripping his robe to pieces. He said, "Am I a god with the power to bring death or life
that I get orders to heal this man from his disease? What's going on here? That king's trying to pick a fight, that's what!"
8 Elisha the man of God heard
what had happened, that the king of Israel was so distressed that he'd ripped his robe to shreds. He sent word to the king,
"Why are you so upset, ripping your robe like this? Send him to me so he'll learn that there's a prophet in Israel."
9 So Naaman with his horses
and chariots arrived in style and stopped at Elisha's door.
10 Elisha sent out a servant
to meet him with this message: "Go to the River Jordan and immerse yourself seven times. Your skin will be healed and you'll
be as good as new."
11-12 Naaman lost his temper.
He turned on his heel saying, "I thought he'd personally come out and meet me, call on the name of God, wave his hand over the diseased spot, and get rid of the disease. The Damascus rivers, Abana and Pharpar,
are cleaner by far than any of the rivers in Israel. Why not bathe in them? I'd at least get clean." He stomped off, mad as
a hornet.
13 But his servants caught up with him and said,
"Father, if the prophet had asked you to do something hard and heroic, wouldn't you have done it? So why not this simple 'wash
and be clean'?"
14 So he did it. He went
down and immersed himself in the Jordan seven times, following the orders of the Holy Man. His skin was healed; it was like
the skin of a little baby. He was as good as new.
Mary is saying the same thing to us: Come to the Blood of Jesus. Wear the sign of it's power on your bodies
in the Scapular. Let the Word of the Blood wash your minds and emotions clean through the Holy Rosary. Give your spirits to
God through the sacrifice of your daily lives on the Cross with Jesus.
If everyone was willing to do these things in faith, the entire country would be transformed. Why? Because
faith works by love and the sacrifical love that is willing to do little things prepares us for the bigger things we can do
in this life and the next.
(Click here for more information on the power of the Rosary, the Brown Scapular and Daily Sacrifices of Love)