JESUS CHRIST IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

IV LENT SUNDAY - John 9:1-41

Preparing the catechumens in their journey of faith towards baptism, the Church uses the catechesis of the Gospel of John, in which we are presented with the symbols of baptism: the living water, the light and the life.

Jesus presents himself as the Light of the world. Before that light, we may react in different ways, accepting the light or rejecting it. This catechesis about Jesus as the Light of the world moves around the healing of a blind man and the reactions that followed.

It is their fault! But is it really?

First of all, we are presented with the situation of a man born blind. He seats all day and begs, being at the mercy of those who have a little compassion. He is seen as cursed and punished by God, because of his own sins or the sins of his parents. He is rejected by society, living like an outcast and he is blamed for it. It is a common trend that then poor and the oppressed are blamed for their suffering. It is their own fault, people say. We are very judgemental, easily condemning those who are in a worse situation than ourselves.

Jesus tells us that suffering and pain are not a sign of sinfulness on the side of those who are affected. Instead of accusing the blind man, Jesus approached him and relieved him of his suffering. The blind man stands for all those who are in darkness and look for light, that is for those who are in need of salvation, and cannot save themselves.

Jesus did most of the healing with just a word of command. In this case, however, Jesus used saliva and soil to make a little mud with which he anointed his eyes. Then, he told the man to go and wash his eyes; and as he did so, he started seeing. Salvation is a gift, which can only be received if we cooperate. In order to be saved, we must put in our own contribution. 

A journey of faith

The story of the blind man, like the story of the Samaritan woman, is a story of a journey of faith, presenting the different stages of that journey. When the man was questioned by his neighbours about the one who did his healing, he answered that it was a man called Jesus. Then, questioned by the Pharisees, he answered that the “man called Jesus” “is a prophet”. When they questioned him a second time, he told them that Jesus was a man “from God”, otherwise he would not be able to do anything. Finally, when Jesus revealed himself to him as the Son of Man, he worshipped him, saying: “Lord, I believe” (Jn 9:38). And he was expelled from the synagogue because of his faith.

Witnessing to Jesus before the world

We can look as well at the reaction of the other interveners in the story. His neighbours noticed the change in his life and realised that something miraculous had happened to him. Thinking it impossible that he could be healed, some could not accept that he was the same blind man. And all wanted to know how such wonder had happened. The blind man was truthful up to the end, always ready to answer and to give the reason for his healing. However, his neighbours, instead of going to Jesus, they went to report the case to the Pharisees, because Jesus did the healing on a Sabbath.

For the Pharisees, it was clear that Jesus was an impostor and a sinner because he did not keep the Sabbath. They could not explain the healing which had taken place, but they had all the answers and did not need to look somewhere else to find the truth. Unable to believe and doubting the truthfulness of the blind man, they questioned his parents. They were afraid and in fear, and so they answered without involving themselves.  After believing, the blind man finds himself alone with his own parents ignoring him.

The Pharisees were ready to pass judgement both on Jesus and on the blind man. The man was ready to give witness to Jesus, being ready for a discussion with the Pharisees, questioning their honesty: “I have told you already, and you would not listen”. And he does not accept their assertion that they are disciples of Moses. How can they be, if they behave like blind, refusing to see the obvious? Instead of accepting the truth, they preferred to exact punishment on him, expelling him from the synagogue.

Are we ready for a journey of faith like the blind man or are we like the Pharisees, who were blind to the surprises that God was doing in their midst? Are we full of pride, refusing to humble ourselves, so that we feel the touch of God in our lives? If we are blind, let us ask the one who is light to fill our minds and our hearts with his light.

WORSHIP IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH

III LENT SUNDAY - John 4:5-42

During Lent, the catechumens receive the final preparation for baptism, with the last Sundays dedicated to deepen the encounter with Jesus and to reflect upon the mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ. The gospel readings for the last three Sundays will come from John. In this third Sunday of Lent, we read about Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman, at the well.

It is interesting that the women play an important role in the Gospel of John. At the wedding of Cana (Jn 2:1-11), Jesus started his public ministry at the request of his mother. And she appears as well at the end, near the cross. In between, we have the Samaritan woman (Jn 4:5-42), the woman caught in adultery (Jn 8:3-11), the profession of faith of Martha (Jn 11:27), the anointing by Mary (Jn 12:1-8). After the resurrection, Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene (Jn 20:11-18)

In the encounter with the Samaritan woman, we have three main themes: the gift of living water, the worship in spirit and truth and the mission to the non-Jews, ending with the profession of faith of the Samaritans.

Like the woman who went to the well to fetch water, we may misunderstand the meaning of living water. Being pressed by our earthly needs, we may no pay attention to the deeper needs of our heart and our soul. We are thirsting for peace and love, and for life. Only Jesus can give us the water that quenches this thirst. The living water is not something that we can get on our own. It is a gift, God’s gift given to us by Jesus Christ. It is the gift of salvation, the gift of life, a boundless life received from God, which comes to us in the Spirit. This living water is the Spirit that creates us anew and makes us into children of God. This is a gift that we share, and the more we share, the more it becomes stronger in us. That’s why the woman rushed to her hometown, calling people to Jesus so that they could receive as well the water of life from him.

During the conversation, the woman put forward the division between Jews and Samaritans about the place of worship. Jesus answered back that God wants a worship done in spirit and truth, and that kind of worship can be done anywhere. We do not need a temple or a sacred place because we are the temple (1 Cor 3:16-17) and our lives must become a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to God. True worship comes about when we allow God to be everything in us, so that God may manifest his presence and his action in us (Ro 12:1).

During his public ministry, Jesus concentrated his activity in Galilee and Judaea, but he showed that his message was open to all. That’s why he passed through Samaria, being ready to preach the Gospel to the Samaritans. He does not exclude anybody. In fact, it is to a Samaritan woman that Jesus reveals himself clearly as the Messiah. The woman, after recognising the Messiah, could not keep the secret for herself, but she felt the urge to share it. And the people of Sychar invited Jesus to stay with them and preach to them the Good News. In the end, they told the woman: “Now we no longer believe because of what you told us; we have heard him ourselves and we know that he really is the saviour of the world.” (Jn 4:42)

Like those Samaritans, we need to hear for ourselves, that is we must make our personal encounter with Jesus so that our faith is not from hearsay, but from an inner certainty that comes from welcoming Jesus into our lives.

THIS IS MY SON, THE BELOVED. LISTEN TO HIM

 II LENT SUNDAY - Matthew 17:1-9

During Lent season, we are called upon to recognise our sin, to repent and to convert. It is a special time for prayer, fasting and almsgiving. We must humble ourselves before God, making an effort to walk in the footsteps of Jesus.

After his baptism, while staying in the desert to emulate the people’s experience of forty years wandering, Jesus chose for himself the role of the Servant of Yahweh, according to Is 53. He rejected power and wealth as the means to establish the Kingdom of God, and he put all his trust in the Father, staying away from any attempt to use magic and witchcraft to have a following and gain influence. He came to serve, and so he would never use his power and his position for his own profit. The way of life that he chose would lead him into conflict with the religious and political authorities. And he spoke to his disciples about his arrest, his condemnation and his execution. They could not understand, because for them as for the people of Israel, a suffering Messiah was unthinkable, making the fulfilment of their expectations impossible. When Jesus spoke to them about his death, they were puzzled and lost; and ignoring the prediction, they discussed among themselves who would be the greatest among them. 

In an effort to reassure the disciples, Jesus chose a core group of three - Peter, James and his brother John - to have a special spiritual experience, when he transfigured himself before them, manifesting his glory. 

In the manner of the Old Testament, when God called Moses to the mountain and when the cloud of God’s glory covered the mountain (Ex 24:15), Jesus took the three disciples to a high mountain. Then, in their presence, “his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light.” Still surprised with this vision, they saw Moses and Elijah joining Jesus and talking to him. Overwhelmed with the glory of Jesus, Peter experienced such delight that he would like it to go on and, forgetting about himself and his friends, he was ready to be at the service of Jesus: “Lord,’ he said ‘it is wonderful for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 

Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets, which Jesus came to fulfil (Mt 5:17), and which speak about him (Jn 1:45). Indeed, the whole of the Old Testament leads to Jesus and receives its full meaning from Jesus. At the same time, the Old Testament helps us to understand and to interpret the messianic role of Jesus.

While Peter was speaking, “a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.” (Mt 17:1-9). In the Old Testament, the cloud and the shadow represent the presence of the glory of God. We may say that, through Jesus, the three disciples had an experience of heaven and that experience was so fulfilling that they did not need anything else.

However, the experience was a short one, and they were called back to reality, the daily life in which we live and where we have to make our choices in order to become true disciples of Jesus Christ. If we open our hearts to the Spirit of the Lord, he may call us to the mountain and grant us special moments of intimacy, in which we are overwhelmed by God’s love and presence. Such experiences are a gift from God and they prepare those who receive them to walk closer with Jesus.

In the climax of the transfiguration, we hear God’s voice, proclaiming Jesus as the Son, the beloved, and giving one command: Listen to him. This is the command given to all of us, who have chosen to be disciples of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Word, and this Word is the source of life. And Jesus would say to his disciples:

“If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (Jn  8:31-32).

Let us have a listening heart, so that the Word may mould us and shape us so that we reveal the face of Christ. When we allow ourselves to be questioned and challenged by the Word, we are ready for conversion and for walking along the path travelled by Jesus. With him, we will climb the mountain of the Lord, and he will give peace and rest to our hearts.

THE HUMAN REVOLT AGAINST GOD

I SUNDAY OF LENT - Genesis 2:7-9,3:1-7

Whenever we read the Bible, we must understand it as speaking to us and about us. And that is so when we read the story of Adam and Eve disobeying God and going their own way. We should not spend time blaming them for all the hardships we go through in our lives and in our world. The story of Adam and Eve is not an old story, but it is a reflexion on our own lives and our own history. Before being personal names, Adam and Eve simply mean man and woman, that is humanity. The sin of Adam and Eve is the sin of humanity, that is a condition and a situation of sin, which set us on the path of sin. The way Eve was seduced is the way we are seduced and carried off the right path, opening the doors to evil in our lives and our society.

The commandment forbidding to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil was given to the man before Eve was created (Gn 2:17). Learning it from Adam, she became the weak link that could be used to introduce doubt and suspicion. And while she was being seduced, he was there by her side, saying nothing, hoping to get the same thing that she was promised, knowledge and power. That’s why God started by questioning Adam, who had received the commandment.

In order to seduce, the serpent used half-truths and exaggeration, thus sowing doubt in their hearts and minds. Filled with suspicion, they could not trust anymore God’s intentions. Why should he have secrets from them and why should he deny them the fruition of such knowledge? It sounded as if God had a hidden agenda for them, or was he afraid of them?

God had not forbidden to eat from the tree of life, but they did not. Knowledge and power were more important to them than life. Possessing the knowledge, they would become the owners of their own lives, deciding what is good or bad for them. They would not need God; instead, they would take his place, becoming gods themselves.

It is interesting that, in Jesus Christ, we are called to be divine, by being the Children of God. But the only way to achieve it is the way of Jesus Christ, who behaved like the Servant of the Lord. We will become gods by being in communion with God, and that happens when we are one with Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Then, God will be all in us.

When we follow the serpent’s way and promote ourselves to gods, we will end up discovering that we are naked, that is we discover our shortcomings and our weaknesses; we discover our fragility and our mortality. The only way to life is accepting God’s wisdom, having a listening heart to his word, putting all our trust in his love and mercy and proclaim with words and deeds that only God is God.

The sin of Adam and Eve is the human revolt against God. We don’t need God and we don’t want him; so we throw him out and take his place, or give his place to gods created by us to satisfy our desires and needs. However, Adam and Eve were not even able to satisfy their basic needs; being naked, they had not the knowledge need to make clothing. God had to make clothing for them (Gn 3:21).

Blinded by the desire to be autonomous and rulers of their own lives, they made a mess of their lives. Their relationship with God was destroyed and they had to hide from, feeling ashamed of God and of each other. They did not accept responsibility for their own decisions, but blamed God, blamed each other and blamed the serpent. Everybody else was responsible, except them. They did not recognise their disobedience and ask for forgiveness; they did not even think of running for the tree of life. They preferred to be their own masters than to submit and accept the gift of life in communion with the one who is the source of life.

During this Lent season, let us try to walk with Jesus along the path that will take him through suffering and death to resurrection. With him, we can follow the path of faithfulness, finding true life and salvation from the only One who can give life and salvation.