The pleasure of darkness is vain! (HOMILY FOR THE 4TH SUNDAY OF LENT YEAR A

HOMILY FOR THE 4TH SUNDAY OF LENT, YEAR A

1Sam.16:1b.6-7.10-13a; Ps.23; Eph.5:8-14; John 9:1-41

“ _Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness” (Eph.5:11)_ 

Theme: The pleasure of darkness is vain!

Right from when the prophets talked about the coming of the Messiah, He was described in terms of light. Isaiah foresaw the Messiah as a great light for all human beings (Isa.60:1-3, 19). He further described him as one who would give sight to the blind (Isa.29:18; 35:5; 42:7). The readings of today cause us to reflect on Jesus as the light of the world. In the gospel reading, Jesus categorically said: I am the light of the world. How do we accept this truth? How do we live out this truth? How do we bring others to accepting this truth? If our lives is not illuminated by Christ, and if we are not radiating this light to others, then our Christianity is merely of lip service. To accept Christ as the light of the world means to see the world only with the lens of Christ Himself. This would mean that we are dropping our ego, our biases, prejudices and corrupt mindset. We will also be submitting our intellect, convictions, education, experiences, etc to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. To accept Christ as the light of the world can be difficult because the darkness that beclouds us, does not apparently make us uncomfortable. If we are not discerning enough to see that we are in darkness, we may end up fighting against the light.

In the first reading, we find a good example of docility to the light of the Lord. First, we must understand that we cannot claim to have fully come to the light, so long as we are in this world. Every day, we journey closer to the light. So, though Samuel was a priest of God, he came more fully to the light. The Lord asked him to go anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king of Israel. Going by his own evaluation and judging by physicality, Samuel would have anointed Eliab. Mind you Samuel had been a priest for a long time. We can imagine that he was most familiar with the ways and mind of God. Thus that could have given him confidence in considering Eliab. But he was wrong. The only reason Eliab was not anointed was because the Lord did not choose him. Beloved, accepting Christ as the light of the world implies that we must always seek the face of God even in matters that we are proficient and experienced about. Don’t feel too versed in business that you no longer pray before buying and selling. Don’t feel too confident in your academic prowess that you no longer seek Divine wisdom. Don’t get so confident in your driving skills that you no longer pray about your travels. Have you sought the face of God concerning what you are doing and what you plan to do? Experience can fail! The light of Christ is the best teacher!

In the gospel reading, we find a very dramatic incident. In Ex.20:5, it was learnt that sin could attract punishment in terms of physical deformity or suffering. So, when Jesus’ disciples saw the man born blind, it was not an issue of whether it was caused by sin or not, but an issue of who sinned. It was very necessary that Jesus’ response corrects this myopic understanding; because Jesus himself will soon be in the situation of the man born blind. He will experience intense suffering that will not be caused by sin. Hence, Jesus answered that the man’s deformity was not caused by sin but will be a template for manifesting God’s glory. Beloved, not all of your problems are caused by a perceived enemy or “village people”. Rather than pointing accusing fingers, while not present them as templates for God’s glory to be made manifest.

It is surprising that after the healing of this man, the question of identity arose: was he the one who was blind? This was because it was not expected that the man will ever see. He did not become blind; he was born blind. The man himself later said: “never since the world began has it been heard that any one opened the eyes of a man born blind”. While the people were amazed, the Pharisees were rather disturbed that this miracle had been done by Jesus. Since it was a miracle never heard of before now, the news of it will mean the popularity of Jesus. This, the Pharisees could not allow. The Pharisees had already rejected Jesus; the goal now is to stop others from accepting Him. So, they presented the argument that Jesus was a sinner. If this argument pulls through, it will either imply that there was never a miracle or that the miracle was not by the power of God. Know this: the light of Christ is Divine; your rejection of it cannot diminish it.

Trying to prove that no miracle happened, that is, that the man was never blind, they sent for his parents. The parents identified him, not just as their son but as one who was born blind. Their confusion was how he came to see. The argument of Jesus being a sinner could not also hold water, for the man answered the Pharisees: we know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshipper of God and does the will of God, God listens to him. The problem of the Pharisees was not one of conviction. They perceived quiet well that Jesus was the Christ. Their problem was the implication of accepting this truth. It would mean that attention will be shifted from them to Jesus. When they could not pull through with arguments, they bluntly spelt out their rejection by casting the man out. Beloved, when you accept Jesus as light, you will radiate the light of Christ. By implication, you will be discomforting to agents of darkness and they will cast you out. So, do not interpret every of your rejection as a sign that you failed. Be more concerned about who is rejecting you and for what reason. Sometimes you will be rejected because you chose and became the light.

It is true that we can find Pharisaic figures around us, but more seriously, we have these figures inside of us pulling us away from the light, trying to keep us comfortable in darkness. Each time we consider coming to the light, we are reminded of the pleasure of darkness we shall miss. But then, the second reading described the works of darkness as unfruitful; they will not bring us true happiness. So. St. Paul asked that we expose these unfruitful works. We know them; they are those shameful things we do in secret. The first step towards exposing them is by going for confession. Second, we must courageously and firmly cut off anything and anyone that lure us into them. Third, we must carve out a new life style that cannot accommodate such acts of darkness. Fourth, we must pray constantly for the grace to remain in the light. The fruits of living in the light of Christ are inexhaustible. Next Sunday, we shall see that the light of Christ is the Lord of Life.

Happy Lenten season to you all