Now I See

Today is the 4th Sunday of Lent which is observed as Laetare Sunday. Laetare is the Latin word for ‘Rejoice.’ On this Sunday, the Church invites her members to rejoice because of the great hope that awaits us at Easter. 
     The first reading (1 Sam. 16:1.6-7.10-13) gives us another reason to rejoice; that God does not judge us based on physical appearances as men do, but that he judges our hearts. The heart here refers to the inner chamber of a person where one interacts with God. This was the lesson Samuel learned when God asked him to anoint David as king instead of his elder brothers who had better physical qualities. The gospel reading (John 9:1-41) expatiates on the 1st reading. When Jesus, together with his disciples, met the man born blind; while his disciples looked at his blindness as a consequence of his sins or those of his parents, Jesus looked straight into the man’s heart and saw him as a potential witness to the Good News. That was why he cured him. 
     The meeting of Jesus with this blind man symbolizes our encounter with God which was made possible by the incarnation of Christ. The presence of Christ’s spittle in the clay gotten from the ground symbolizes the divine presence in those activities we may see as ordinary. The pool of Siloam which means ‘sent’, symbolizes the Church which is sent to represent Christ in the world. The washing in the pool symbolizes a participation in the sacraments of the Church of which baptism is of paramount importance. The faith of the blind man symbolizes the faith of all who have truly encountered Christ on a personal level. The reaction of the Pharisees and the Jews symbolize the attitude of those who see the light of faith and yet refuse to follow it on account of their stubbornness and unbelief. 
     The story of the blind man can be our story as well. Sometimes, we go spiritually blind. Within this period of lent, God invites us to wash ourselves in this pool of Siloam by actively taking part in the Lenten observance. The diocesan-wide evening of reconciliation on March 25 and April 1, from 5pm to 8pm, is another “Siloam” opportunity to get washed clean through the sacrament of penance.