27-Mar-2011 Dear Friend,
We often pity the blind and feel sorry for them. But we may also be aware of blind people who have risen above their handicap and are leading very successful lives. On the other hand we see many who have physical sight but are blind! They are the prejudiced, those who chose to keep their eyes shut and refuse to see, and those who cannot see beyond the obvious. Do we have Vision? Can we look beyond? Can we see the awesomeness of life and the hand of God around us? Let’s pray that we may see again! Fr. Jude Sunday Reflections: Fourth Sunday of Lent –‘I know, I was blind but now I see again!’ 3-Apr-2011 1 Sam 16: 1, 6-7, 10-13; Ephesians 5: 8-14; John: 9: 1-41; In today’s first reading we see God commissioning Samuel to seek and anoint a new king in place of Saul who proved to be a failure. Samuel’s search leads him to Bethlehem to the house of Jesse and his sons. One by one he is introduced to his seven sons, all of whom possessed outstanding physical attributes. Samuel was impressed but not satisfied till he sees the youngest –David –a mere youth. God asks Samuel to anoint David as the new King of Israel. God’s choice is so different from man’s, God sees the heart! Blinded by Prejudice In the late 1700s the manager of a large hotel in Baltimore refused lodging to a man dressed like a farmer. He turned the farmer away because he thought this fellow’s shabby appearance would discredit the reputation of his distinguished hotel. The farmer picked up his bag and left without saying a further word to anyone. Later that evening, the innkeeper discovered that he had turned away none other than the Vice President of the United States - Thomas Jefferson! Immediately, the manager sent a note of apology to the famed patriot, asking him to come back and be his guest in the hotel. Jefferson replied by instructing the messenger as follows, “Tell him I have already reserved a room. I value his good intentions highly, but if he has no room for a common American farmer, then he has no room for the vice-president of the United States of America.” Brian Cavanaugh in ‘The Sower’s Seeds’ The Gospel of John contains the lengthy story of the man who was born blind who’s sight Jesus restores and who follows him. Jesus had not come merely to give sight to the blind. He poses a deeper question: Who are blind?: the physically blind or people like the Pharisees who refuse to see! In the Old Testament blindness and suffering were connected to sin, seen as a punishment by God. The people who see the man born blind are wondering whether he is suffering because of his sins or the sins of his parents! Jesus says: “Neither this man nor his parents, but in order that the works of God may be displayed in him.” He then goes on to heal the man and reveals the compassionate face of God in the face of human suffering. Finding the cause of the suffering does not matter, nor does it help the one who is suffering. The suffering of others will always remain a mystery to be lived not a problem to be solved. The suffering of others provides us with an opportunity to show care, to reveal God’s love through us. Doing something now is the moment of salvation for ourselves and others. We shall pass through this world but once. Any good, therefore, that we can do, or any kindness that we can show, to any human being, let us do it now; let us not defer it or neglect it, for we shall not pass this way again. God’s Living Word One of the most appealing advertisements for Third World help is one asking for a few pounds to save a person’s sight. Apparently, there is an eye disease prevalent in some countries that leaves many people blind but which can be prevented by simple remedies if there are enough resources available. The advertisement is asking us to do what we can to give a person sight for life. It was the same request that the blind man made to Jesus in today’s gospel. Jesus answered the request and more. He gave the man back his sight so that he could see the world about him like the rest of us. But he gave him something more as well. He gave him vision to penetrate the deeper realities, faith to know that Jesus is Son of God, come into this world. Sight enables us to see the obvious things as they are. Vision explores ideals, faith, hope, love mercy, trust and generosity. Such vision is a gift of God, a gift we need individually and as a people. The young thirst for such a gift. We are called to create an atmosphere where they are open to receive it and to respond to it. Tom Clancy in ‘Living the Word’ Now I See Again! During World War II John Howard Griffin was blinded in an airplane explosion. For the next 12 years he couldn’t see a thing. Then, one day he was walking down a street near his parent’s home in Texas. Suddenly he began to see “red sand” in front of his eyes. Without warning, his sight returned again. An eye specialist explained to him later that a blockage of blood to the optic nerve, caused by the explosion, had opened, causing his sight to return again. Commenting on the experience, Griffin told a newspaper reporter “You don’t know what it is for a father to see his children for the first time. They were both much more beautiful than I ever suspected.” Gerard Fuller in ‘Stories for all Seasons’ Film: The Miracle Worker- Discovering the fullness of life When she is nineteen months old, Helen Keller becomes deaf, blind and dumb because of an illness. As she grows up, her family indulges her and, lacking all discipline, she becomes unmanageable. They write to Boston’s famous Perkins School for the blind hoping to find help. The school sends one of its students, Annie Sullivan, who is partially blind. She assesses the situation, realizes that Helen is intelligent but needs structure and discipline in order to learn to communicate meaningfully. Annie and Helen clash and some of their frustrated struggles are violent. Annie Sullivan persuades the Kellers to allow Helen to live with her, apart from the family for a while. They move to the garden house. Gradually, Helen accepts Annie and learns to do basic things for herself. But the key skill Helen begins to develop is language. Annie teaches Helen to spell with her fingers, as she herself once learned, and hopes that Helen will then connect this spelling and words with real objects and concepts. But it is not an easy process and there are more struggles. One day, after Annie and Helen return to the family home, Helen throws a jug of water over Annie. Annie makes Helen refill the jug. Feeling the water, Helen starts to make the connections and her amazing life as a communicator begins. Peter Malone in ‘Lights, Camera… Faith!’ Lead Kindly Light Cardinal John Henry Newman was a professor at the Oxford University. When he was an Anglican priest, along with the other scholars, he started the Oxford movement. When he was thirty-two years old, his health was bad and he took a break from his writings and went to Europe to recuperate. But unfortunately, he contacted a deadly fever. He wanted to return back to England, but no transportation was available. As he waited, his life became lonely and tedious; he was experiencing great physical and emotional despair. It is then that he penned a beautiful hymn asking God for light: “Lead, kindly light, amid th’ encircling gloom, Lead Thou me on; The night is dark, and I am far from home; Lead thou me on: Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see The distant scene-one step enough for me.” In his confusion and distress, Newman prayed to the God of light to lead him from darkness to light, from confusion to certainty, and from sickness to health. God heard his prayer and led him home safely. In 1845, he got converted to the Roman Catholic faith. John Rose in ‘John’s Sunday Homilies’ Life Too is Neutral! Fred Spencer wrote a popular book named The Jungle Is Neutral. Spencer had been a soldier in World War II, stationed in a small garrison on the island of Singapore, just off the tip of the Malay Peninsula. The British defense of this garrison was rather one-sided, as they felt that no army could ever pass through the impenetrable jungle to the north, and that any attack on Singapore would have to come from the sea. To the chagrin of the British, however, the Japanese did the seemingly impossible and passed through the thick jungles of the peninsula to attack the garrison from the north. Singapore fell almost without a fight. Spencer though was able to escape into the jungle, and he spent nine months there before he was able to rejoin his countrymen. He had heard two conflicting reports about the jungle, however, and so at the time of his flight, he really had very little idea of what to expect. He had heard that the jungle was a horrible place filled with snakes and insects, fruit so poisonous that one bite would kill, and brutal wild animals. Therefore, any man lost in the harsh forests would die very quickly. But the other story Spencer had been told was that the jungle was a lush, tropical paradise with plenty of fresh water and edible fruit. In other words, it was a place where anyone could survive with relative ease. The truth that Spencer discovered during his nine months in that jungle was that it is neutral. Spencer found that the jungle was neither pre-set to destroy him by making it impossible to survive, nor was it structured to support him. He learned that his survival depended directly on the amount of effort he put forth to survive. Spencer was able to make of his environment what he chose it to be. Is life a jungle? Life, too, is neutral! Brian Cavanaugh in ‘The Sower’s Seeds’ May we acknowledge our blindness and truly see with His help! Fr. Jude Botelho [email protected] PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections. These reflections are also available on my web site www.netforlife.net Thank you.
