The Fourth Sunday of Lent
Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave” tells us that when people are used to a certain perceived truth that was instilled in them since birth, it will be the truth that they will be carrying all their lives. Some will try to tell them the real truth, but there will be resistance in accepting it. Others will not accept it. Those who accept it will face some challenges in fully understanding the truth.
The story of the “Man Born Blind” is a journey from a perceived truth to the absolute truth. We can consider that there are two ways of blindness in this Gospel periscope, the physical
and spiritual blindness. First, those who are spiritually blind were the Pharisees, who could not see the wonders that the Lord had done for the man born blind. They are like the troglodytes who kept living in the cave and believed the perceived truth they had been taught since birth.
On the other hand, physical blindness is represented by the man born blind whom Jesus healed. His healing was not only about his physical blindness. He was also enlightened about the truth of the Son of Man that led him to a newfound faith. He had some challenges discovering such absolute truth, but the Lord led him to it.
Hopefully, this Laetare Sunday has already deepened our understanding of God’s truth. After all the observance of the Lenten disciplines and sacrifices in the past weeks, we should now have seen clearly God’s love, mercy, and compassion for all
of us.
A blessed Laetare Sunday to all.
Fr. Leo Ayuyao, SSS
