9781644135945

The Light of the World
Meditation
Struggle and labor are the lot of Christ and His Church. We know that because of our weakness
we could expect nothing but defeat and disillusionment. But our very weakness is our strength.
The more we humble ourselves and the greater our trust in the Lord, the surer we are of victory.
From Him we shall obtain the strength for victory. For this reason we cry out with the Church
today, like the blind man in the Gospel: “Be Thou unto me a God, a protector, and a place of
refuge to save me; for Thou art my strength and my refuge; and for Thy name’s sake Thou wilt
lead me and nourish me” (Introit).
“And when He drew nigh to Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the wayside begging. And when
he heard the multitude passing by, he asked what this meant. And they told him that Jesus of
Nazareth was passing by. And he cried out, saying: Jesus, Son of David have mercy on me. . . .
And Jesus, standing, commanded him to be brought unto Him. And when he was come near
He asked him, saying: What wilt thou that I do to thee? But he said: Lord, that I may see.
And Jesus said to him: Receive thy sight; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately
he saw and followed Him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise
to God” (Gospel).
The blind man of the Gospel is, in the eyes of the liturgy, the Church of the Gentiles.
Abandoned to itself, it is the blind man sitting by the wayside in misery and poverty. How it
longs for the ability to see! The power of vision would be its most priceless possession. But
who can and who will give it the power of sight? The Son of God descends from heaven and
meets it on the wayside. It learns that the Lord is passing by and cries out to Him from the
depths of its misery, its poverty, and its helplessness: “Son of David, have mercy on me.” The
Lord is disposed to grant mercy. “What wilt thou that I do to thee?” “Lord, that I may see.”
Only let me see; only give me light. Give me that, and I shall be rich and possess all things.
The Lord gives it the desired grace, the grace of faith. Now its desires are satisfied, and in
the possession of the faith it possesses all things: God, the world, time, eternity, light, and
love. With joy and gratitude it cries out: “Thou art the God that alone dost wonders; Thou
hast made Thy power known among the nations. With Thy arm Thou hast redeemed Thy
people, the children of Israel and of Joseph” (Gradual). “Sing joyfully to God, all the earth;
serve ye the Lord with gladness. . . . We are His people and the sheep of His pasture” (Tract).
We are the Church. In baptism Christ heals our blindness. The Fathers were wont to call baptism
“the enlightenment.” In this sacrament we receive the gift of faith and Christ, the truth, our God
and our all. Would that it could be said of us, as it was of the blind man, “And immediately he
saw and followed Him, glorifying God”!
In the mind of the liturgy, today should be a day of thanksgiving for the gift of faith.
How often has it been necessary for Christ to restore our “inner sight” since the time of our
baptism? How little we treasured it! How carelessly we cared for it! We should imitate the
liturgy, which never wearies of thanking God for this marvelous gift. “Blessed art Thou, O
Lord; teach me Thy justifications. With my lips I have pronounced all the judgments of Thy
mouth” (Offertory).
Until now we were helpless, poor, and blind. Then through Christ we received our sight. We
now behold the marvelous world of His gifts and His grace, the most resplendent of which is
206