From
Quarantine to Communion:
The
Fourth Sunday in Lent 2020
March 22, 2020
1
Samuel 16:1, 6-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41
During this time of self-distancing
when many churches are closed for Sunday and daily worship, I am aware of the
weightiness and responsibility of offering mass for the faithful. Our work as
priests are to foster a spiritual communion in a time when we cannot offer the
people the sacrament of God. We pray for those people who seek communion, and
we pray that we experience communion with one another in a time of uncertainty.
Communion is never an experience between you and God alone because by necessity
it requires caring for the other person. Masses are always celebrated, not just
for those who attend worship, but for the sake of the world.
The story of the man born blind
in the Gospel of John has elements that are important to us during this crisis.
First, the man is instructed to wash himself in the waters of Siloam while we
are instructed to wash our hands repeatedly and to disinfect the surface areas
that may carry virus particles. Second, like the Jewish authorities in the
story, we are trying to find the cause of the virus. There are even some
preachers who will make preposterous claims that God is angry about our sinfulness
in particular areas of our moral lives. As Jesus points out in the story, sometimes
these things just happen and trying to find causes does not solve the current
crisis. Neither the man born blind nor his parents sinned. His condition may
have come about through a number of physiological reasons, but it is not
connected with any moral failure.
While the Gospel is about coming to belief
through the gift of visual sight, this is our present time to examine how and
what we believe about Jesus. The man born blind’s entire world has been flipped
upside down after a lifetime of disability and dependence upon others. His life,
up until his healing, has been one of social quarantine as he could not work,
play, relate to others, prepare his own meals, date, or enjoy the pleasures of
life. His had been a lifetime of hardship.
With the disruption we will face, we
will find ourselves like the man born blind who has to reintegrate himself back
into society. He had to learn new social customs; we will as well. We will face
anxiety if we do not know how long our social exile will be. We will have increased
time with ourselves, have to figure out what to do with the time and the
silence, and we will recognize the importance of our social connections. We may
have more time with the people we love, and we might not know how best to spend
it. We are going from major swings in work-life balance from having too little
time and rest to having far too much time and rest. We will have to re-establish
commerce, find out how to resume to projects that were interrupted, sometimes
major ones like job and school applications, and we will slowly come back as a
community again, but with new protocols. Throughout this time, our desire to
see Jesus will increase. We will have an opportunity to experience what many
elderly, shut-ins, and hospitalized people face in their aloneness.
Let’s examine how Jesus keeps us in
communion during this time. Let’s continue to look for him until we see his face
plainly. Let’s pray for those who are disconnected from us. Jesus will lead us
through this and he will remind us that we have each other as gifts. All we
have is the present moment. Jesus stands ready to heal our sight, bring us to
greater belief, and to help us cherish the communities of which we are a part.
Scripture for Daily Mass
First
Reading:
Monday:
(Isaiah 65) The Lord is about to create new heavens and a new earth; the things
of the past shall not be remembered; there will always be rejoicing and
happiness.
Tuesday:
(Ezekiel 47) The angel brought the prophet to the entrance of the temple where
life-giving water flowed forth and bringing life to all.
Wednesday:
(Isaiah 49) The Lord finds favor with Israel and promises help on the day of
salvation. The Lord will help Israel keep the commandments because He cannot
forget her beauty.
Thursday:
(2 Samuel 7) The Lord said to David: Your house shall endure forever; your
throne shall stand firm forever.
Friday:
(Wisdom 2) The wicked said, “Let us beset the just one because he is obnoxious
to us. Let us revile him and condemn him to a shameful death.”
Saturday:
(Jeremiah 11) Jeremiah knew their plot, but like a trusting lamb led to
slaughter, had not realized they were hatching plots against him.
Gospel:
Monday:
(John 4) Jesus returned to Galilee where he performed his first miracle. Some
believed in him. A royal official approached him as his child lay dying, but at
the hour Jesus spoke to him, his son recovered.
Tuesday:
(John 5) Jesus encountered an ill man lying next to a healing pool, but when
the water is stirred up, no one is around to put him in. Jesus heals him and he
walks away. The Jews protest that Jesus cured on the Sabbath. The Jews began to
persecute Jesus.
Wednesday:
(John 5) Jesus explains that he is the unique revealer of God and cannot do
anything on his own. He judges as he hears and his judgment is just because he
does not seek his own will.
Thursday:
(Matthew 1) The birth of Jesus came about through Mary, betrothed to Joseph. In
his dream, the angel tells Joseph to take the pregnant Mary as his wife.
Friday:
(John 7) Jesus did not wish to travel around Judea because the Jews were trying
to kill him, but he went up during the feast of Tabernacles where he was
spotted. He cried up in the streets, “You know me and you know where I am
from.”
Saturday:
(John 7) Some in the crowd said, “This is the prophet.” Some said, “This is the
Christ.” A division occurred because of him because they could not settled how
he fit into Scripture. Nicodemus interjected, “Does our law condemn a man
before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?” The crowd dispersed
to their homes.
Saints of the Week
March
23: Toribio of Mogrovejo, bishop
(1538-1606) was a Spanish law professor in Salamanca who became the
president of the Inquisition in Granada. As a layman, he was made the
Archbishop of Lima, Peru and became quickly disturbed at the treatment of the
native populations by the European conquerors. He condemned abuses and founded
schools to educate the oppressed natives. He built hospitals and churches and
opened the first seminary in Latin America.
March
25: The Annunciation of the Lord
celebrates the announcement that God chose to unite divinity with humanity at
the conception of Jesus. God sent the angel Gabriel to Mary to inform her of
God’s intentions to have her conceive the future Messiah. The boy’s name was to
be Jesus – meaning “God saves.” This date falls nine months before Christmas
Day.
This Week in Jesuit History
·
March 22, 1585: In Rome, Fr. General received the three Japanese
ambassadors with great solemnity in the Society's Church of the Gesu.
·
March 23, 1772: At Rome, Cardinal Marefoschi held a visitation of the
Irish College and accused the Jesuits of mismanagement. He removed them from directing
that establishment.
·
March 24, 1578: At Lisbon Rudolf Acquaviva and 13 companions embarked
for India. Among the companions were Matthew Ricci and Michael Ruggieri.
·
March 25, 1563: The first Sodality of Our Lady, Prima Primaria, was
begun in the Roman College by a young Belgian Jesuit named John Leunis
(Leonius).
·
March 26, 1553: Ignatius of Loyola's letter on obedience was sent to
the Jesuits of Portugal.
·
March 27, 1587: At Messina died Fr. Thomas Evans, an Englishman at
29. He had suffered imprisonment for his defense of the Catholic faith in
England.
·
March 28, 1606: At the Guildhall, London, the trial of Fr. Henry
Garnet, falsely accused of complicity in the Gunpowder Plot.