REFLECTIONS

Today a man who was born blind is cured. ..........The cured man is challenged by the Pharisees. He is surprised that they cannot see what he sees, namely that Jesus is ‘a man from God’. He who was blind can see what those who are not blind cannot see. It is the Pharisees who are blind. They cannot see what Jesus has done because their only concern Is the Sabbath regulation. They find fault rather than the love of God. Like us, the minutiae of their particular expectations and understandings prevent them from seeing the goodness of other people. They are blind to the presence of God. Openness to God requires us to see beyond ourselves and to move out of our comfort zones. Indeed, if we look for what is wrong that is what we will see. Let’s strive to see things as God sees them. The pure in heart shall see God. (Source: God’s Word Daily Reflections 2023) Spiritual growth requires that we employ what gurus call “beginner’s mind”. This is the attitude that is aware of its limitations and open to new truths and surprises. Lent is a good time to cultivate beginner’s mind. It’s a time to see ourselves and the world not with our own prejudices but as God sees - as worthy of help and healing and love.