ENLIGHTENED BY CHRIST OUR LIGHT

20170326 ENLIGHTENED BY CHRIST OUR LIGHT

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Rose or Violet.

First reading

1 Samuel 16:1,6-7,10-13 ©

The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have chosen myself a king among his sons.’ When Samuel arrived, he caught sight of Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed stands there before him,’ but the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Take no notice of his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him: God does not see as man sees: man looks at appearances but the Lord looks at the heart.’ Jesse presented his seven sons to Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, ‘The Lord has not chosen these.’ He then asked Jesse, ‘Are these all the sons you have?’ He answered, ‘There is still one left, the youngest; he is out looking after the sheep.’ Then Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Send for him; we will not sit down to eat until he comes.’ Jesse had him sent for, a boy of fresh complexion, with fine eyes and pleasant bearing. The Lord said, ‘Come, anoint him, for this is the one.’ At this, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him where he stood with his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord seized on David and stayed with him from that day on.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 22(23) ©

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

The Lord is my shepherd;

  there is nothing I shall want.

Fresh and green are the pastures

  where he gives me repose.

Near restful waters he leads me,

  to revive my drooping spirit.

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

He guides me along the right path;

  he is true to his name.

If I should walk in the valley of darkness

  no evil would I fear.

You are there with your crook and your staff;

  with these you give me comfort.

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

You have prepared a banquet for me

  in the sight of my foes.

My head you have anointed with oil;

  my cup is overflowing.

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me

  all the days of my life.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell

  for ever and ever.

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

Second reading

Ephesians 5:8-14 ©

You were darkness once, but now you are light in the Lord; be like children of light, for the effects of the light are seen in complete goodness and right living and truth. Try to discover what the Lord wants of you, having nothing to do with the futile works of darkness but exposing them by contrast. The things which are done in secret are things that people are ashamed even to speak of; but anything exposed by the light will be illuminated and anything illuminated turns into light. That is why it is said:

Wake up from your sleep,

rise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you.

Gospel Acclamation

Jn8:12

Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;

whoever follows me will have the light of life.

Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!

EITHER:

Gospel	John 9:1-41 ©
The blind man went off and washed himself, and came away with his sight restored

As Jesus went along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, for him to have been born blind?’ ‘Neither he nor his parents sinned,’ Jesus answered ‘he was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

‘As long as the day lasts

I must carry out the work of the one who sent me;

the night will soon be here when no one can work.

As long as I am in the world

I am the light of the world.’

Having said this, he spat on the ground, made a paste with the spittle, put this over the eyes of the blind man, and said to him, ‘Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam’ (a name that means ‘sent’). So the blind man went off and washed himself, and came away with his sight restored.

  His neighbours and people who earlier had seen him begging said, ‘Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?’ Some said, ‘Yes, it is the same one.’ Others said, ‘No, he only looks like him.’ The man himself said, ‘I am the man.’ So they said to him, ‘Then how do your eyes come to be open?’ ‘The man called Jesus’ he answered ‘made a paste, daubed my eyes with it and said to me, “Go and wash at Siloam”; so I went, and when I washed I could see.’ They asked, ‘Where is he?’ ‘I don’t know’ he answered.

  They brought the man who had been blind to the Pharisees. It had been a sabbath day when Jesus made the paste and opened the man’s eyes, so when the Pharisees asked him how he had come to see, he said, ‘He put a paste on my eyes, and I washed, and I can see.’ Then some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man cannot be from God: he does not keep the sabbath.’ Others said, ‘How could a sinner produce signs like this?’ And there was disagreement among them. So they spoke to the blind man again, ‘What have you to say about him yourself, now that he has opened your eyes?’ ‘He is a prophet’ replied the man. However, the Jews would not believe that the man had been blind and had gained his sight, without first sending for his parents and asking them, ‘Is this man really your son who you say was born blind? If so, how is it that he is now able to see?’ His parents answered, ‘We know he is our son and we know he was born blind, but we do not know how it is that he can see now, or who opened his eyes. He is old enough: let him speak for himself.’ His parents spoke like this out of fear of the Jews, who had already agreed to expel from the synagogue anyone who should acknowledge Jesus as the Christ. This was why his parents said, ‘He is old enough; ask him.’

  So the Jews again sent for the man and said to him, ‘Give glory to God! For our part, we know that this man is a sinner.’ The man answered, ‘I don’t know if he is a sinner; I only know that I was blind and now I can see.’ They said to him, ‘What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?’ He replied, ‘I have told you once and you wouldn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it all again? Do you want to become his disciples too?’ At this they hurled abuse at him: ‘You can be his disciple,’ they said ‘we are disciples of Moses: we know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.’ The man replied, ‘Now here is an astonishing thing! He has opened my eyes, and you don’t know where he comes from! We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but God does listen to men who are devout and do his will. Ever since the world began it is unheard of for anyone to open the eyes of a man who was born blind; if this man were not from God, he couldn’t do a thing.’ ‘Are you trying to teach us,’ they replied ‘and you a sinner through and through, since you were born!’ And they drove him away.

  Jesus heard they had driven him away, and when he found him he said to him, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ ‘Sir,’ the man replied ‘tell me who he is so that I may believe in him.’ Jesus said, ‘You are looking at him; he is speaking to you.’ The man said, ‘Lord, I believe’, and worshipped him.

  Jesus said:

‘It is for judgement

that I have come into this world,

so that those without sight may see

and those with sight turn blind.’

Hearing this, some Pharisees who were present said to him, ‘We are not blind, surely?’ Jesus replied:

‘Blind? If you were,

you would not be guilty,

but since you say, “We see,”

your guilt remains.’

ENLIGHTENED BY CHRIST OUR LIGHT

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 SM 16:1, 6-7, 10-13; EPH 5:8-14; JN 9:1-41]

Many are seeking the wrong things in life.  We seek fulfillment of our physical needs.  We seek pleasure, thinking it is happiness.  We mistake lust for love; physical relationship for personal relationship.  This is because many of us are blind.  Like Samuel in today’s first reading, we judge from appearances. But the Lord said to Samuel, “God does not see as man sees; man looks at appearances but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Why are we blind?  This was the question posed by the disciples to Jesus.  “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, for him to have been born blind?”  Implied in this question is that physical suffering is due to one’s sins or the sins of our parents.  This was the common view held by the Jews.  They regarded illness and misfortunes as punishment for personal sins or the sins of their ancestors. There is certainly some relationship with regard to the principle of cause and effect.  However, this does not mean that every physical suffering or mishap is caused by sin, as if it is a punishment from God.

Hence, the response of Jesus was “‘neither he nor his parents sinned,’ Jesus answered, ‘he was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’”  Suffering, which is part and parcel of being human is permitted by God in order to help us perfect ourselves in holiness by growing in virtues and uniting ourselves to the sufferings of Christ our Redeemer, who, although innocent, bore in Himself the punishments our sins merited.  This explains why even our Lady and St. Joseph and all the Saints experienced intense suffering, thereby sharing in the redemptive suffering of Christ.

Consequently, more than just physical blindness, what is at stake in spiritual blindness?  The greatest tragedy is not being physically blind but to live in darkness.  Today’s gospel shows how the blind man came to confess Jesus as the messenger, prophet and Son of God; whereas the Pharisees persisted in not wanting to see or believe, despite the clear evidence before them. Although physically able to see, they were truly blind because they simply could not accept that Jesus could have healed the blind man.

Their spiritual blindness was due to their legalistic mindset.  As in previous occasions when Jesus healed the sick on the Sabbath, such as the paralyzed man beside the pool, he was perceived to have broken the Law.  The conclusion was that because Jesus did not keep the Sabbath, He could not be a man of God and His miracles were therefore not from God.  So, although the miracle was obvious to everyone, yet the Pharisees were so stubborn that they did not wish to see the significance of the event; not even after questioning the man himself and his parents.  The sin of the Pharisees was not in not seeing God in Christ, but in not letting Jesus, who is the light, open their eyes.

Such deliberate blindness is even more tragic.  Today, we continue to have people who refuse to recognize goodness and truth even when they see them. There are many self-righteous people who are so comfortable in their status quo that they do not want to change.  They insist on living in darkness.  Worst of all, many are so proud of themselves that they refuse to recognize the existence of God, less still to acknowledge Christ as the Light.   Thus, it is necessary that we turn to Jesus as the Light of the World.  The work of Jesus is to reveal to us the truth about life and about His Father.  He is the Light of the world because His life among men has given us the ultimate meaning of the world, of the purpose and goal of life.  He gave light to the eyes of the blind man by enlightening his soul, leading him to make an act of faith in His divinity.

Acceptance of Jesus as the Light is rectified through the Sacrament of baptism.  Indeed, the miracle in today’s gospel is seen by the Fathers of the Church as symbolizing the Sacrament of Baptism in which, through the medium of water, the soul is cleansed and receives the light of faith.  This is further reiterated by St. Paul who depicted baptism as true enlightenment.  In baptism, a person who was dead, that is separated from God by sin, moves out of darkness into the light.

Consequently, the liturgy invites all of us today, catechumens and those who are already baptized, to renew our act of faith in Christ.  What does this entail? Firstly, faith calls for obedience.  The healing of the blind man is reminiscent of the healing of Naaman. Unlike Naaman who reluctantly obeyed, the blind man obeyed promptly without asking questions or raising any objections.  Although physically blind, the blind man acted upon the order of Christ.   So faith requires that we take the words of Jesus seriously.  Without the obedience of faith, no change can take place.  Indeed, if many of us have yet to discover Christ as the Light of our lives, it is because we have not yet given ourselves to the gospel.  We must believe in His words!

Hence, faith is to believe. For John, believing is seeing.  Only when we believe, can we then see.  St Augustine defines theology as faith seeking further understanding.  Unless we believe, we cannot understand, since understanding of the deeper truth requires that we first surrender.  It is especially true in the case of love and relationship. Just by studying and observing people in love cannot help us to understand love unless we begin to love ourselves.  Thus, the question of Jesus to the blind man, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” is the climax and the central meaning of today’s gospel.  For John, sin is not so much doubting, but not believing in Jesus as the one who has been sent to reveal God’s goodness.

When we believe, we begin to understand more.  This is the process of coming to maturity in faith.  Such a journey of faith is typical of the journey of every man.  Conversion to Christ is a process. The blind man exemplifies this journey into faith.  It is significant that it was not the man who found Jesus but Jesus who found him!  Conversion for the blind man began the moment he obeyed Jesus’ command.  Conversion begins when Jesus seeks us out and we make ourselves available to His touch. He then opens our eyes to the truth, but we do not immediately understand.  As the gospel shows, the faith of the man himself deepened gradually. He first thought of Jesus as just a man, and then concluded that Jesus must be a prophet, and finally ended by acknowledging His divinity.

The corollary to accepting Jesus as the Son of God is living in the light.  There can be no dichotomy between faith and life, belief and morality.  Indeed, St. Paul exhorts us not to live in “darkness” as before our conversion. The proper course for a believer, for someone enlightened by faith, is to live differently.  The Christian is in a different position from that of a pagan.  As believers, we know Jesus and are therefore enlightened in the truth. The gospel must govern our behaviour and lifestyle.  Having been reborn in Christ, we are called to be the “light of the world” by living a life that is good and right and true.

By so doing, we become a witness to Christ, our Light.  By our new way of being and thinking and acting, we become a living example of what it means to live an enlightened life.  For this is what baptism is really all about – being enlightened in Christ and living an enlightened life.  By our word and example, we can throw light on all human realities, and thereby enlighten the world in distinguishing right from wrong.

Indeed, we must share in the same urgency that Jesus felt in His ministry.  He said, “As long as the day lasts, I must carry out the work of the one who sent me; the night will soon be here when no one can work.” As long as it is day, we must do the work of Him who sent us.  Night is coming, when no one can work.  This is the other aspect of baptism.  Incidentally, there is a play on the word “Siloam” which means to be sent.  Having been washed by the waters of baptism and enlightened by Christ, we are then sent to share in the work of God, which is the work of liberation and of healing and of compassion and of forgiveness. It is the work of love-filled living and giving – the work of bringing salvation.

And the reality is that we have plenty of work to do.  Today, people who live in worlds of blame and bitterness surround us. Everywhere there is so much that blinds people and prevent them from living in the freedom of love and truth that God had meant for us.  We must proclaim loudly by our lives and deeds that all this blindness, this blame, this bitterness, this bondage can be overcome by surrendering in faith to Christ.   Instead of assigning blame to our parents and the environment, all we need to do is to follow the master’s instructions and do all that we can to allow the work of God to be made manifest in and through us.

Finally, although being a witness to Christ would entail rejection by the world, just as the blind man was thrown out of the synagogue, we can take consolation that Jesus would seek us out to minister to us, just as He did for the blind man.  Through our sufferings in witnessing, like the blind man, we will see Jesus even more clearly.  For being loved by Jesus, we will begin to know and see who Jesus really is.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved