Fourth Sunday of Lent – Laetare Sunday
In the first reading, from the Book of Samuel, the Lord picks for himself a King for Israel. The Lord sees the heart, and not the outward appearance. The Lord looks also at our hearts, and asks that our hearts be reconciled and cleansed.
The second reading, from the Letter to the Ephesians, exhorts us to “try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord”. In fact, we are not to take part in works of darkness, because they are unfruitful – we can even call them sterile. They do not bear good results.
The Gospel, which brings us the encounter between Jesus, and the man born blind, reminds us of the fact that the Lord is a healer.
The first element of this Gospel is that Christ begins his healing work by declaring that neither this man, nor his parents, had sinned. This, in some way, reinstates the blind man into the community.
Secondly, the Gospel also demonstrates to us, that even after the miraculous healing, there were some who refused to accept God’s power. Some among the crowds even mentioned that the man healed was not the man born blind. God demonstrates his powerful works, but He also gives us the possibility and the freedom to either see His power – or deny it. The freedom to choose between good and evil, between truth and falsity, between light and darkness, is written into – programmed into – the human heart. The problem is that some who thought they saw, were actually blind.
Thirdly, the Gospel ends with the question – addressed to the man born blind – also addressed to all of us – that question is, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” And when the man born blind asks Jesus “who is he, so that I might believe in Him?”, Jesus answers “You have seen him, and the man speaking to you is he”. Jesus declares Himself to be the Son of God, and the Son of Man. The only thing left is for the blind man – and for us – is to worship the Son of God, and the Son of Man. This is what we do in the Holy Eucharist.
Please be aware of the possibility of making a Spiritual Communion, when you cannot receive Holy Communion in the Holy Host. The following is a prayer for making Spiritual Communion: My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You.
(Fr. Pawel Ratajczak, OMI, March 22, 2020)