With Jesus or Against Him?

Fourth Sunday of Lent Yr A

Collect

O God, who through your Word reconcile the human race to yourself in a wonderful way, grant, we pray, that with prompt devotion and eager faith the Christian people may hasten toward the solemn celebrations to come. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

First Reading
1 Sm 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a

David is anointed as king of Israel.

A reading from the first Book of Samuel

The LORD said to Samuel:
“Fill your horn with oil, and be on your way.
I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem,
   for I have chosen my king from among his sons.”

As Jesse and his sons came to the sacrifice,
   Samuel looked at Eliab and thought,
   “Surely the LORD’s anointed is here before him.”
But the LORD said to Samuel:
   “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.”
In the same way Jesse presented seven sons before Samuel,
   but Samuel said to Jesse,
   “The LORD has not chosen any one of these.”
Then Samuel asked Jesse,
   “Are these all the sons you have?”
Jesse replied,
   “There is still the youngest, who is tending the sheep.”
Samuel said to Jesse,
   “Send for him;
   we will not begin the sacrificial banquet until he arrives here.”
Jesse sent and had the young man brought to them.
He was ruddy, a youth handsome to behold
   and making a splendid appearance.
The LORD said,
   “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.

The word of the Lord.

Ps 23: 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6

R. :

℟. (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
   In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
   he refreshes my soul.

℟. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

He guides me in right paths
   for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
   I fear no evil; for you are at my side
With your rod and your staff
   that give me courage.

℟. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

You spread the table before me
   in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
   my cup overflows.

℟. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Only goodness and kindness follow me
   all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
   for years to come.

℟. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Eph 5:8-14

Arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians

Brothers and sisters:
You were once darkness,
   but now you are light in the Lord.
Live as children of light,
   for light produces every kind of goodness
   and righteousness and truth.
Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.
Take no part in the fruitless works of darkness;
   rather expose them, for it is shameful even to mention
   the things done by them in secret;
   but everything exposed by the light becomes visible,
   for everything that becomes visible is light.
Therefore, it says:
      “Awake, O sleeper,
      and arise from the dead,
      and Christ will give you light.”

The word of the Lord.

Acclamation before the Gospel
Jn 8:12

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
whoever follows me will have the light of life.

Gospel
Jn 9:1-41 or 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38

The man who was blind went off and washed himself and came back able to see.

✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

As Jesus passed by he saw a man blind from birth.
His disciples asked him,
   “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents,
   that he was born blind?”
Jesus answered,
   “Neither he nor his parents sinned;
   it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.
We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is day.
Night is coming when no one can work.
While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
When he had said this, he spat on the ground
   and made clay with the saliva,
   and smeared the clay on his eyes,
   and said to him,
“Go wash in the Pool of Siloam”—which means Sent—.
So he went and washed, and came back able to see.

His neighbors and those who had seen him earlier as a beggar said,
   “Isn’t this the one who used to sit and beg?”
Some said, “It is,“
   but others said, “No, he just looks like him.”
He said, “I am.”
So they said to him, “How were your eyes opened?”
He replied,
   “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.”
And they said to him, “Where is he?”
He said, “I don’t know.”

They brought the one who was once blind to the Pharisees.
Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath.
So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see.
He said to them,
   “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.”
So some of the Pharisees said,
   “This man is not from God,
   because he does not keep the sabbath.”
But others said,
   “How can a sinful man do such signs?”
And there was a division among them.
So they said to the blind man again,
   “What do you have to say about him,
   since he opened your eyes?”
He said, “He is a prophet.”

Now the Jews did not believe
   that he had been blind and gained his sight
   until they summoned the parents of the one who had gained his sight.
They asked them,
   “Is this your son, who you say was born blind?
How does he now see?”
His parents answered and said,
   “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind.
We do not know how he sees now,
   nor do we know who opened his eyes.
Ask him, he is of age;
   he can speak for himself.”
His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews,
   for the Jews had already agreed
   that if anyone acknowledged him as the Christ,
   he would be expelled from the synagogue.
For this reason his parents said,
   “He is of age; question him.”

So a second time they called the man who had been blind
   and said to him, “Give God the praise!
We know that this man is a sinner.”
He replied,
   “If he is a sinner, I do not know.
One thing I do know is that I was blind and now I see.”
So they said to him,
   “What did he do to you?
   How did he open your eyes?”
He answered them,
   “I told you already and you did not listen.
Why do you want to hear it again?
Do you want to become his disciples, too?”
They ridiculed him and said,
   “You are that man’s disciple;
   we are disciples of Moses!
We know that God spoke to Moses,
   but we do not know where this one is from.”
The man answered and said to them,
   “This is what is so amazing,
   that you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes.
We know that God does not listen to sinners,
   but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to him.
It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind.
If this man were not from God,
   he would not be able to do anything.”
They answered and said to him,
   “You were born totally in sin,
   and are you trying to teach us?”
Then they threw him out.

When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out,
   he found him and said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
He answered and said,
   “Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?”
Jesus said to him,
   “You have seen him,
   the one speaking with you is he.”
He said,
   “I do believe, Lord,” and he worshiped him.
Then Jesus said,
   “I came into this world for judgment,
   so that those who do not see might see,
   and those who do see might become blind.”

Some of the Pharisees who were with him heard this
   and said to him, “Surely we are not also blind, are we?”
Jesus said to them,
   “If you were blind, you would have no sin;
   but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains.

Or: [Shorter Form]

As Jesus passed by he saw a man blind from birth.
He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva,
   and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him,
   “Go wash in the Pool of Siloam”—which means Sent—.
So he went and washed, and came back able to see.

His neighbors and those who had seen him earlier as a beggar said,
   “Isn’t this the one who used to sit and beg?”
Some said, “It is, “
   but others said, “No, he just looks like him.”
He said, “I am.”

They brought the one who was once blind to the Pharisees.
Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath.
So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see.
He said to them,
   “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.”
So some of the Pharisees said,
   “This man is not from God,
   because he does not keep the sabbath.”
But others said,
   “How can a sinful man do such signs?”
And there was a division among them.
So they said to the blind man again,
   “What do you have to say about him,
   since he opened your eyes?”
He said, “He is a prophet.”

They answered and said to him,
   “You were born totally in sin,
   and are you trying to teach us?”
Then they threw him out.

When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out,
   he found him and said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
He answered and said,
   “Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?”
Jesus said to him,
   “You have seen him, and
   the one speaking with you is he.”
He said,
   “I do believe, Lord,” and he worshiped him.

At the end of the Gospel, the Deacon, or the Priest, acclaims:

The Gospel of the Lord.

All reply:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Reflection
In the Gospel we encounter several moments and events in which Jesus invites those he meets to make fundamental choices in their lives. Perhaps the ones we remember most are the way he chose the Twelve and the challenge he presented to the rich young man. Yet we also find Jesus inviting others to make similar choices. At times he does this with people who themselves approach him, such as the expert in the law who asked him who his neighbour was. After telling him the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus tells him that if he wishes to be a neighbour to others he should go and do the same as the Samaritan. To other people, like Zacchaeus, Jesus himself approaches them and makes them an offer they cannot refuse. When Zacchaeus chose to welcome Jesus into his house, Jesus told him that “today salvation has come to this house.” Who could resist an offer which, if accepted, brings salvation?

Today’s somewhat lengthy Gospel passage recounts another moment in which a person who encountered Jesus had to make a fundamental choice. In the ninth chapter of his Gospel, John tells the story of Jesus healing a man who had been blind from birth. While last Sunday the main theme was water, today it is light. Just as the Samaritan woman was able to see in Jesus the one who, more than quenching her physical thirst, could satisfy her spiritual thirst, in the same way this man came to move from physical light to spiritual light when he recognised Jesus not only as the one who had healed him physically but also as his Lord. This process of conversion experienced by the man born blind who received the light contrasts sharply with the attitude of the Pharisees who, although they could see physically, were spiritually in darkness because they refused to recognise Jesus for who he truly is, the Son of God.

This reading from John’s Gospel serves as the theme of the Second Scrutiny for those who are preparing to receive the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist at the Easter Vigil. These elect are invited to examine themselves and consider to what extent Jesus is truly their Light: How much do they look at life through the eyes of Jesus? To what extent do their values resemble those of the Kingdom of God as revealed through Jesus? We too are invited to make this examination of conscience together with them, in a spirit of prayer and fasting.

Prayer

Father of Mercy, you led the man born blind to the Kingdom of light through the gift of faith in your Son. Free us all from whatever keeps us blind. Establish us in your truth, and make us children of your everlasting light. Amen.

 

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