33rd Week, Monday, Nov 14
Apocalypse 1:1-4; 2:1-5 / Luke 18:35-43
Do not grow discouraged; Return to your former deeds.
It was halftime in the Dallas Cowboy-St. Louis Cardinal game on Thanksgiving 1985. A reporter was interviewing Lou Holtz, newly appointed head coach of Notre Dame's football team. "What's the first thing you're going to do to try to get the 'Fighting Irish' back to their old winning ways?" asked the reporter. Holtz surprised everyone by saying, He writes, "I'm going to work on establishing three things with my players: love, trust, and commitment." Holtz's formula for returning Notre Dame to its winning ways is what Jesus himself would prescribe for people who want to return to the ideals of their former life. They must trust that they can change, commit themselves to change, and use love as their motivation for change.
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How far have we drifted from our old ideals? "Until we lose ourselves there is no hope of finding ourselves." Henry Miller
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From today until the end of the Church year we read from the book of Revelation, apocalyptic writing. The author wants to express trust in God and the future, for ultimately God will win the struggle between good and evil, involving not only the earth but also heaven intervening. He does not know how, and to a large extent he is guessing, using traditional apocalyptic images, many inspired by religious experiences of God’s people in the past, and trying to apply them to the present but even to the future. But underlying all this, even when describing calamities, is the firm faith and hope that God will win and that therefore there is no reason to be afraid.
After Jesus had scolded the apostles for their lack of understanding and faith, Luke shows him curing the blind man. Is it perhaps to teach the apostles a lesson and show them that they need to be healed from their blindness by faith? In any case, Jesus becomes light and gives light to the blind man. We ask our Lord to give us eyes of faith.
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The test of our zest and fervour, of commitment and conviction, of love and faithfulness, will be over the test of time. Under the test of time, we will know where we stand in the areas of our work and our relationships, and also in every aspect of our lives.
We may start with something with zest and fervor and profess our commitment and declare our conviction.
But as the days go by, with its monotony and repetitiveness, we get bored for a lack of variation and variety. We are not as excited and energetic as when we first started. It can happen with marriage, with caregiving to the elderly, with a job, and even in our relationship with God.
Like the blind man who has his sight restored by Jesus, may we "see again" and love God and others deeper.
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Prayer
God, almighty Father, each of us too could say: Let me see again, for I am blind to the love that you show me in the people around me. Let me see again, for I am blind to the goodness and beauty that you reveal to me in your creation and in the events of life. May we too hear from the lips of your Son: your faith has saved you. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen
