We are called, appointed, anointed by God to see the light and lead others out of darkness.

The ritual is a strange one, as archaic rites tend to be when viewed from the distance of centuries and across cultures. An animal is sacrificed at the altar, and after much ceremony that is as precise as it is significant to the participants, a designated person steps forward to the presiding priest.

Walking down the street, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned: this man or his parents, causing him to be born blind?” Jesus said, “You’re asking the wrong question. You’re looking for someone to blame. There is no such cause-effect here.

I have seen the musical, Come from Away more than once, so taken am I with its message of hope in the midst of despair. Perhaps you know of this musical based on real events: In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, 38 planes were ordered to land as quickly in possible in Gander, Newfoundland.

I was at a friend’s house, and his young son was doing a school project on a topic I happen to know something about. I offered my assistance, and at first the son seemed to welcome any help he could get. But every time I tried to tell him something new he interrupted by saying, “I know, I know.”

Everyone in the gospel story of the healing of the man born blind appears to be in the dark about who Jesus is and why he does what he does, and most feel threatened and confused by Jesus’ good works.

When my niece was about 12 years old, she brought some friends with her to visit her grandma. While there, she showed them the pictures of her uncles on my mother’s dresser, commenting on each of them. “That’s my Uncle Dominic,” she said, pointing to my picture.

God's light makes everything visible. Let us ask for God's presence shine into both the light and darkness of our lives.

The eye through which I see God is the same eye through which God sees me; my eye and God’s eye are one eye, one seeing, one knowing, one love.