INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily is, “What Do You See?”
TODAY’S
READINGS
Today’s readings for this 4th Sunday in Lent -
are all about seeing.
The first reading is all about the choice of David and the
anointing of David as the future leader of Israel.
Seven of Jesse’s sons are presented to him - and Samuel seeing
them says, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is here before me.”
And the Lord says, “Do not judge by appearance.”
Then the Lord adds, “Not as man does God see, because man
sees the appearance - but the Lord looks into the heart.”
Then Samuel asks Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”
I always wonder how the seven brothers felt when they
heard that.
I say that because one of life’s biggest learnings is
that the youngest in every family is always the best. The parents finally got
it right. Are there any only child here?
And Jesse says, “There is still the youngest, who is
tending the sheep.”
And Samuel says, “Send for him. We don’t begin the sacrificial
banquet until he arrives here.”
So Jesse sent for his youngest son and when Samuel sees him - the best looking
of the sons - which to me is sort of contradictory - after we had heard about
not judging by appearance, Samuel says, “There - anoint him, for this is the
one.”
“Then Samuel with the horn of oil in hand, anointed David
in the presence of his brothers; and from that day on, the spirit of the Lord
rushed upon David.”
Great scene - perfect for movies - and plays.
The second reading from Ephesians begins with the words, “You
were once in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of
light….”
These are great baptismal texts.
Being a Christian is all about seeing the Light - and
being the Light of the world - and not spending our lives living in the dark.
Today’s gospel - today’s long gospel - is all about the
Blind Man.
We are called to see - and no longer be blind.
We are called to let Christ be the Light of our World. We
are called to let Christ touch our eyes - so that we can see better.
The title of my homily is, “What Do You See?”
CHARLIE BROWN
CARTOON
Last night when I was working on this homily I remembered
a Charlie Brown cartoon from way, way back.
Using Google I found it.
It’s a cartoon that has always got me thinking about what
I see and that people see differently - something I often forget.
Being self-centered - I often assume everyone sees the way I see.
You’re kidding.
Nope.
Well, the Charlie Brown cartoon goes like this. Lucy,
Linus and Charlie Brown are laying on the grass on a hill looking up into the
sky.
Lucy says, “Aren’t the clouds beautiful. They look like
big balls of cotton. I can just lie here all day and watch them drift by. If
you use your imagination you can see lots of things in the cloud formations.”
Then Lucy says, “What do you see up there Linus?”
And Linus answers, “Well those clouds up there look like
the map of British Honduras on the Caribbean.
“That cloud up there looks a little bit like the profile
of Thomas Eakins the Painter and the Sculptor.
“And that group of clouds up there look like the stoning
of Stephen. I can see the apostle Paul standing there off to one side.”
And Lucy says, “Uh huh. That’s very good.”
Then Lucy asks, “What do you see in the clouds Charlie
Brown?”
And Charlie answers, “Well I was going to say I saw a
ducky and a horsy but I changed my mind.”
For some reason that cartoon has taught me one of life’s
great lessons: We all don’t see the same.”
The title of my homily is, “What Do You See?
CHRISTIANITY IS
ALL ABOUT HOW WE SEE AND SEEING BETTER
Christianity is all about how we see, what we see, and
seeing better.
Lent is all about seeing better on Easter Sunday morning
than how we saw on Ash Wednesday.
This morning I went over to our religious education
program - to see some kids in our Special Needs class.
It’s always wonderful to walk through St. Mary’s or here
at St. John Neumann and see all the things that are going on: whether it’s a
Spanish Mass or Baptisms, a soup supper, kids playing lacrosse, people making
Ranger Rosaries, a Bible Study Group, a Woman’s Spirituality meeting, kids
running in the parking lot, 2 weddings yesterday, and all the Masses, stations
of the cross, kids selling mulch or adults pushing tootsie rolls.
Today I got the thought that every kid is a special needs
kid.
Do I see kids - do I see adults - do I see the person on
the edge of the crowd - as a special
needs person?
Or am I too self-centered that I only see myself - and my
special needs?
Am I like the Pharisees in today’s Gospel who are so
wrapped up in their understanding of religion - that they can’t celebrate a
blind man healed and now he sees.
Do I see and hear today’s gospel - today’s long gospel - that’s
it’s all about me being blind and me learning to see?
Do I see and hear today’s second reading - that church is
all about coming into a well-lighted place - so that I can walk out of this
place - and see better for the rest of this week?
Do I see and hear today’s first reading - that I was once
anointed with oil - in my baptism - that I am anointed and appointed - by the
Lord to make a difference - our theme for this year - in the places I am this
year.
CONCLUSION
When I get that - when I come out of that cloud - hopefully
I feel what David felt for the rest of his life: the rush of the spirit - well
not always - but hopefully a lot, please God. Amen.
OOOOOOO
Painting on top: by Alex Colville
