The theme of sight runs throughout this Sunday’s texts. In the first reading, when the prophet Samuel is sent by God to find the new king who will replace Saul, Samuel selects the young David, reminding us that “the Lord does not see as mortals see” (1 Sam. 16:7). Similarly, Jesus chooses to heal a blind man on the sabbath with dirt and saliva, much to the dismay of the good religious people who cannot see what God is doing in Jesus. Lent is a time for us to see differently, and the sacrament of baptism is sometimes called enlightenment. Like the man born blind and John Newton, who wrote “Amazing Grace,” God’s grace invites us to announce. “I once was blind, but now I see.” In baptism God opens our eyes to see the truth of who we are: God’s beloved children.
image: Persistence of Vision by Bruce Herman. Copyright © Bruce Herman. All rights reserved. Used by permission of the artist. www.bruceherman.com