Readings:
1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13
Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41
How were your eyes opened?
By Sister Jean Bellini, member of the Pastoral Land Commission, Brazil
In John’s gospel, we accompany a scene in which Jesus’s disciples are ready to call judgement on a man simply by noting that he was blind, presuming that his blindness was the result of sin. They are not really seeing the man, only his limitation. Jesus, on the other hand, moved by the man’s condition, did what was in his power.
When the man was brought before the Pharisees, they said, “This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And they were divided. Imagine, learning that a man born blind could now see, only to resist recognizing the miracle of him having been cured, and being more concerned about sabbath laws instead!
When we are presented with a new way of looking at the reality around us, are we open to perceiving the new, or do we resist and hold on to what is familiar, what served us in the past?
Justiça nos Trilhos (Justice on Rails) and Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada work to open the eyes of people―within the Church and beyond―to see what isn’t so obvious at first, encouraging a second level of awareness. By their preferential option for the poor, they have come to see beyond first appearances, to look a little more closely, to see the broader picture, sometimes helping us see what at first goes unnoticed.
We live in an era of indiscriminate distribution of information, real and fake, significant and trivial, all day, every day and everywhere. Unconsciously, our minds tend to “protect” us by shielding us from absorbing the true importance of the information and hence we screen out valid and significant facts together with the insignificant.
Your donations during the Lenten campaign make it possible for Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada to support the genuine efforts of partners in the Global South. These partners encourage, accompany and communicate the initiatives and efforts of grassroots organizations to overcome difficulties and find viable, sustainable solutions to environmental, social and economic challenges, and to do so collectively, thereby strengthening their resilience against future challenges.
Since 1981, I have been an active member of the Pastoral Land Commission. Ever since Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada was created, we have been able to count on its solidarity in meeting our challenges. And so the web of solidarity grows and intertwines. We collaborate in joint actions with Justiça nos Trilhos and greatly admire their work.
The work of Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada members and volunteers who offer their time and energy to spread the word and encourage others to collaborate through their campaigns is very important and greatly appreciated.