Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof.
“Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof. Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed. (cf. Lk 7:6-7)
The Lord Jesus, having heard these words, expressed his admiration for this man's faith: “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith”
(cf. Lk 7: 9). Few such words of appreciation come from the lips of the Lord Jesus. The words of the centurion (a pagan!) were recorded in the Church in the liturgy. We repeat them at every Holy Mass. Undoubtedly, it is worth devoting a moment of attention and reflection to them.
“Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof” (cf. Lk 7: 6). For a Jew, visiting a pagan entailed incurring ritual impurity. So, coming to the centurion home will cost Jesus to be exposed to such uncleanness. The centurion knew it. But that probably does not exhaust the whole reason why the centurion utters these words. He shows a great sense of holiness in the person of Jesus. He truly believed that Jesus was sent by God and therefore had power from Him. Hence the attitude of great reverence and humility. We heard a similar confession from the mouth of St. Peter after the miraculous catch of fish: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man” (cf. Lk 5: 8). This attitude of the centurion differs from the curiosity and expectation of something extraordinary that is usual for people who follow Jesus. The centurion has a great sense of the dignity and holiness of the Lord Jesus, which are strongly expressed by the following words: " And that is why I did not consider myself worthy to come to you" (cf. Lk 7: 7).
The centurion's faith, on the other hand, is revealed in the next sentence: “but say the word and My servant will be healed” (cf. Lk 7:7). Real faith is expressed in concrete commitment, it is faith in the true possibility of fulfilling the promise. The centurion believed that Jesus had the power to heal, whether He met the sick person directly or not. No Israelite has shown such faith! We speak these words, slightly changed, before communion itself, asking Jesus to cleanse our interior before coming to us. We believe that if He can do it, He does it. And it may not be so difficult inregard to his coming to us, but if at the same time we realize that this confession refers to the belief that our soul is healed so that it is ready for full communion with others, it is a difficult faith. But only then is this faith truly healing. It is impossible to love God if you do not love your neighbor whom God has given us (see 1 Jn 14: 20).
In the Letter to Timothy, St. Paul recommends prayers for all people: for kings and for all rulers (1 Tim 2: 2). First, because the time of peace and social order corresponds to the development of faith, but not only for this reason. This prayer grows out of the awareness that God wants all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2: 4).
That is why Jesus came to earth and died on the cross. Accepting Christ into one's heart consequently means accepting his spirit of love for all people, and thus opening oneself in love to all. Then you can no longer build "so call right" claims to others, exclude anyone from the possible community. And this dimension of our faith in Jesus Christ is sometimes the most difficult. However, if we believe in Jesus Christ, we believe that He has the power to heal even the most unrepentant sinners.
" Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof”, but I should also ask: Am I worthy to enter under your roof?
When we say, "Lord, I am not worthy," we should take these words as a reminder that we are partaking in a stunningly glorious mystery. I, a man of flesh and blood, walking on earth, am to enter the Infinity of God Himself. I am to plunge into the ocean of His holiness and love in order to drown in it, die and find His own life at the deepest hidden bottom of my heart. I am to become the temple of the Most High, His home. I am invited to share my life with my Creator and Lord of the universe. The Father introduces me, a weak man, into his heart, so that I may live there and let His blood flow in my veins. Such a miracle cannot be treated as a trivial activity, such as eating an ice cream. And that is why, aware of the enormity of the mystery that draws us in, we pray with love and earnestness: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed” Thanks to you, my whole life will be saved, rescued and changed.