St. Anthony & Our Lady of Fatima

Jesus heals the man born blind. The story is masterfully and artfully complex yet succinct. Drama abounds and intrigue develops with each verse. Fundamental themes and metaphors such as light versus darkness, sigh versus blindness, knowing versus not knowing, and more, including willful ignorance in the face of demonstratable evidence, all are woven together in this gospel passage that is the source of tremendous insight and wisdom. Jesus takes the initiative. He creates cognitive dissonance in the minds and hearts of many, demanding that they make a decision for or against him. When do we face such encounters with Christ? What is our response?

Each of us came to faith through someone else. The woman at the well shared her experience with the townspeople. Many believed upon hearing, and many more heard for themselves and believed. Even the process of believing, or rather, coming to faith is gradual. Terms like “prophet” give way to “Christ” and ultimately (in this story) to “Savior.” Jesus cannot be encapsulated by one title or in one encounter. The initial experience leaves the woman and the townspeople wanting more. Such is the life of faith. We do not have a once-and-for-all encounter. But a relationship with Jesus unfolds over time, ever deepening, ever revealing, until we ultimately encounter the cross and the exaltation.

No matter how hard we try to avoid temptations, they find their way into our spiritual life. It seems as though they lie in wait for us, trying to catch us when we least expect them, or when our resolve to avoid them is weak. The story of Jesus’ temptations in the desert gives us hope. His response to the tempter came from a realization that his mission was from God, and not from the attractions offered by the devil. In the face of temptation, our strength comes from remembering our true self, a son or daughter of God. Nothing is greater than that.

Jesus’ Transfiguration marks and important turning point in his mission. When he and the three disciples come down from the mountain they set their faces toward Jerusalem. There, Jesus will endure his passion and death and be raised from the dead. These events will transform the life of all those who will be his disciples. God bestowed on Jesus an identity of “my beloved.” From the moment of our Baptism, we too are named the beloved of God. The voice from the cloud urges the disciples to “listen to him.” When we hear and follow the word of the Lord, we live as the beloved of God.