Journey to the Cross

Pause

In the forced solitude of waiting, lean into silence.

In the mindfulness of inhaling, exhale grace.

In the intentionality of washing your hands, feel God’s presence with you.

In the darkest valley, remember that Christ is the light of the world.

Listen

Therefore, they called a second time for the man who had been born blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know this man is a sinner.”

The man answered, “I don’t know whether he’s a sinner. Here’s what I do know: I was blind and now I see.”

They questioned him: “What did he do to you? How did he heal your eyes?”

He replied, “I already told you, and you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”

They insulted him: “You are his disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. We know that God spoke to Moses, but we don’t know where this man is from.”

The man answered, “This is incredible! You don’t know where he is from, yet he healed my eyes! We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners. God listens to anyone who is devout and does God’s will. No one has ever heard of a healing of the eyes of someone born blind. If this man wasn’t from God, he couldn’t do this.”

They responded, “You were born completely in sin! How is it that you dare to teach us?” Then they expelled him.

John 9:24-34

Think

Deciding whether something is good or bad is not a matter of personal opinion. Just because I don’t like something, does not make it wrong. So how are we supposed to decide? In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells us to judge a tree by its fruits. The religious leaders in today’s reading are not worried about the outcome or fruit of Jesus’ actions. They are much more concerned with their own understanding or opinion that what he did was wrong.

So what makes for good fruit? St. Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against things like this.”

During the current health crisis, you might find yourself wondering what the right thing to do is. Other than staying home and washing our hands, what should guide our actions and words? One way to determine what we should do is to ask about the outcomes: Do my words and actions produce or strengthen love for all people? Do they lead to more kindness? Do my words and actions support trust and faithfulness between all members of our community? Let these fruits be our guides in times of crisis!

Andrew Kellner

Pray

God, I don’t always like what is right. Help me to judge by your light and see things for the fruit they produce. Help me to bear the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Amen.

Go

Open your eyes today to the light of God surrounding you.

Open your eyes today to the light of God within you.

Open your eyes today to the light of God in each person you meet.

Open your eyes today, and see all that God has for you to see.