As I was reflecting on the readings for this week, I was struck by two words that seem to pervade the readings: light and sight. How important each of these are; as you cannot have one without the other. Without sight, one cannot see. Without light, even those who see, cannot distinguish. Yet, even when we do see, do we always see rightly? I think the answer would be, no.
We see this reality played out today in the first reading from the Book of Samuel. Samuel is told by God to rise, go to the house of Jesse, and anoint one of his sons as King of Israel. Recall, that the first king was Saul of the tribe of Benjamin. He proved himself unfaithful to the command of the Lord, and as a result, Samuel tells Saul, “You have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel... The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you” (1 Samuel 15:26-28). And who did God find who was better than Saul? David, son of Jesse.
At the command of the Lord, Samuel goes to Bethlehem, to the house of Jesse. He asks Jesse to accompany him for a sacrifice. As the first of Jesse’s sons (Eliab) enters, Samuel sees his tall stature, good looks, and regal bearing and thinks to himself, “Surely the LORD's anointed is here before him” (1 Samuel 16:6). But God kindly rebuffs him, saying, “Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
Do I judge from appearances? Do I judge from the external the disposition of the internal? All the time! And I know that I am not alone. Studies have shown that the more attractive the television meteorologists, the more accurate are their forecasts. The same holds true for politicians; the better looking they are, the more they are perceived as trustworthy and competent. May we hear the same words addressed to Samuel, “Do not judge from his appearance... Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart.” For it is out of the heart and the works that proceed from it that the measure of a man or woman will be proved true.
In today’s gospel, Jesus heals a man born blind. What a miraculous occurrence; that someone born blind could now see! Yet, this man was not the only one who was blind. The temple officials, those religious leaders lauded as wise in the ways of God, were blind to the works of God. A man everyone knew to be blind, now sees and they ask him how this can be. He replies, “The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and told me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' So, I went there and washed and was able to see." But the officials cannot or will not believe. Ultimately, they looked at Jesus’ humble exterior, his vocation as a carpenter, his lack of formal education, and his claims to authority, and judged him to be dangerous to the status quo. In pretending to be wise, they made themselves fools. Lord, give us eyes to see and the light of faith to perceive. Let us not remain content with exterior observances this Lenten Season, but let us enter into the interior where true conversion takes place. Amen
Peace,
Seminarian Benjamin