Fourth Sunday of Lent
Ir-Raba' Ħadd tar-Randan
Messalin
A pp 150
1 samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a
The LORD
said to Samuel: “Fill your horn with oil, and be on your way. I am sending you
to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have chosen my king from among his sons.” As Jesse
and his sons came to the sacrifice, Samuel looked at Eliab and thought, “Surely
the LORD’s anointed is here before him.” But the LORD said to Samuel: “Do not
judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected
him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the LORD
looks into the heart.” In the same way Jesse presented seven sons before
Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen any one of these.” Then
Samuel asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” Jesse replied, “There is
still the youngest, who is tending the sheep.” Samuel said to Jesse, “Send for
him; we will not begin the sacrificial
banquet until he arrives here.” Jesse sent and had the young man brought to
them. He was ruddy, a youth handsome to behold and making a splendid
appearance. The LORD said, “There—anoint him, for this is the one!” Then
Samuel, with the horn of oil in hand, anointed
David in the presence of his brothers; and from that day on, the spirit of the
LORD rushed upon David. This is the Word
of the Lord.
………
L-Ewwel
Lezzjoni
Qari
mill-Ewwel Ktieb ta' Samwel 16, 1b,
6-7,10-13a
F'dak iż-żmien,
il-Mulej qal lil Samwel: Imla
l-qarn biż-żejt u itlaq. Jien se nibagħtek
għand
Ġesse
l-Betlemita, għaliex
minn minn
=====
Responsorial Psalm
psALM 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
He guides me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side
With your rod and your staff
that give me courage. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side
With your rod and your staff
that give me courage. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
You spread
the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows. R/
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Only
goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come. R/.
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come. R/.
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall
want.
…………
Salm Responsorjali
Salm Responsorjali
Salm 22(23)
Il-Mulej hu r-ragħaj tiegħi,
xejn ma jonqosni,
f'mergħat kollha ħdura
jqegħedni.
Ħdejn l-ilma, fejn nistrieħ, jeħodni;
hemm hu jrejjajqni. R/
Il-Mulej
hu r-ragħaj tiegħi, xejn ma jonqosni.
Imexxini fit-triq tas-sewwa
minħabba l-isem tiegħu.
Imqar jekk
nimxi f'wied mudlam,
ma nibżax mill-ħsara,
għax
inti miegħi.
Il-ħatar tiegħek u l-għasluġ tiegħek,
huma jwennsuni. R/
Il-Mulej hu r-ragħaj tiegħi, xejn ma jonqosni.
Inti tħejji mejda għalija
quddiem l-għedewwa tiegħi.
Biż-żejt tidlikli rasi,
u l-kalċi tiegħi tfawwarli. R/
Il-Mulej hu r-ragħaj tiegħi, xejn ma jonqosni.
Miegħi, iva, jimxu t-tjieba u l-ħniena
il-jiem kollha ta' ħajti.
U ngħammar f'dar il-Mulej
Sakemm indum ħaj. R/
Il-Mulej hu r-ragħaj tiegħi, xejn ma jonqosni.
=====
ephesians 5:8-14
Brothers
and sisters: You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as
children of light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness
and truth. Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the
fruitless works of darkness; rather
expose them, for it is shameful even to mention the things done by them in secret; but
everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that becomes
visible is light. Therefore, it says: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the
dead, and Christ will give you light.” This
is the Word of the Lord.
……………
It-Tieni
Lezzjoni
Qari
mill-Ittra ta' San Pawl Appostlu lill-Efesin 5, 8-14
Ħuti, intom kontu darba dlam, imma issa intom dawl
fil-Mulej, għixu ta' wlied id-dawl li intom; frott id-dawl jinsab
f'kull ma hu tjieba, f'kull ma hu ġustizzja,
'kull ma hu verita'. Fittxu li tagħrfu dak li jogħġob
lill-Mulej, u tissieħbux fl-għemejjel tad-dlam bla frott, imma
ikxfuhom bil-beraħ. Għax dak li qegħdin
jagħmlu huma fil-moħbi, tistħi mqar jekk issemmih: imma meta wieħed joħroġhom
fil-beraħ, id-dawl juri kollox, għax kull ma jidher hu dawl; għalhekk jingħad: "Stenbaħ int, li int rieqed, u qum mill-imwiet, ħa jiddi fuqek Kristu." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
=====
=====
Gospel
john 9:1-41
As Jesus
passed by he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who
sinned, this man or his parents, that he
was born blind?” Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made
visible through him. We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is
day. Night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the
light of the world.” When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made clay
with the saliva, and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him, “Go wash in the Pool of Siloam” —which means
Sent—. So he went and washed, and came back able to see. His neighbors and
those who had seen him earlier as a beggar said, “Isn’t this the one who used
to sit and beg?” Some said, “It is” but others said, “No, he just looks like
him.” He said, “I am.” So they said to him, “How were your eyes opened?” He
replied, “The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and told me, ‘Go
to Siloam and wash.’ So I went there and washed and was able to see.” And they
said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I don’t know.” They brought the one who
was once blind to the Pharisees. Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on
a sabbath. So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see. He said
to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.” So some of
the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, because he does not keep the
sabbath.” But others said, “How can a sinful man do such signs?” And there was
a division among them. So they said to the blind man again, “What do you have
to say about him, since he opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.” Now
the Jews did not believe that he had
been blind and gained his sight until
they summoned the parents of the one who had gained his sight. They asked them,
“Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How does he now see?” His
parents answered and said, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind.
We do not know how he sees now, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him, he
is of age; he can speak for himself.” His parents said this because they were
afraid of the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone acknowledged him as the Christ,
he would be expelled from the synagogue. For this reason his parents said, “He
is of age; question him.” So a second time they called the man who had been
blind and said to him, “Give God the praise! We know that this man is a
sinner.” He replied, “If he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know is
that I was blind and now I see.” So they said to him, “What did he do to you? How
did he open your eyes?” He answered them, “I told you already and you did not
listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples,
too?” They ridiculed him and said, “You
are that man’s disciple; we are disciples of Moses! We know that God spoke to
Moses, but we do not know where this one
is from.” The man answered and said to them, “This is what is so amazing, that
you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does
not listen to sinners, but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to
him. It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind. If
this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything.” They answered
and said to him, “You were born totally in sin, and are you trying to teach
us?” Then they threw him out. When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, he
found him and said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered and said, “Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus
said to him, “You have seen him, the one speaking with you is he.” He said, “I
do believe, Lord,” and he worshiped him. Then Jesus said, “I came into this
world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind.” Some
of the Pharisees who were with him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not also
blind, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin;
but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains. This is the Word of the Lord.
…………...
L-Evanġelju
Qari mill-Evanġelju skond San Ġwann 9, 1-41
F'dak iż-żmien, kif kien għaddej,
Ġesu' lemaħ raġel agħma minn Mur
inħasel fil-menqgħa ta' Silwan." Din tfisser "il-Mibgħut". Mela dak mar, inħasel u ġie jara. Il-ġirien u dawk li s-soltu
kienu jarawh, għax hu kien tallab, qalu:"Dan m'huwiex dak li kien
joqgħod bilqiegħda jittallab?"
Xi wħud qalu:"Iva, hu." Oħrajn qalu: "Le, imma jixbħu." Iżda hu qalilhom: "Jien
hu."Qalulu: "Mela kif infetħulek għajnejk?"
Weġibhom:
"Wieħed raġel,jgħidulu Ġesu', għamel ftit tajn, dilikli għajnejja bih, u qalli: "Mur
fis-Silwan u nħasel hemm."
Mort, inħsilt, u ġejt nara." Qalulu: "Fejn huwa dan ir-raġel?" Qalilhom: "Ma nafx." Lil dan
il-bniedem li fl-imgħoddi kien agħma ħaduh
għand il-Fariżej. Issa dak in-nhar li Ġesu'
għamel it-tajn u fetaħ għajnejn
l-agħma nzerta kien
is-Sibt. Il-Fariżej ukoll staqsew mill-ġdid
lill-agħma
kif sar jara. U hu qalilhom: "Qegħedli
ftit tajn fuq għajnejja,
mort ninħasel,
u issa qiegħed
jara." Xi wħud
mill-Fariżej qalu: "Dan il-bniedem
m'huwiex ġej
mingħand Alla, għax ma jħarisx is-Sibt." Iżda oħrajn qalu: "Kif jista' wieħed
midneb jagħmel sinjali bħal
dawn?" U ma qablux
bejniethom. U reġgħu
qalu lill-agħma:
"Inti x'jidhirlek minnu, issa li fetaħlek għajnejk?" Qalilhom: "Dak profeta." Il-Lhud ma
ridux jemmnu li hu kien agħma u ħa d-dawl qabel ma
bagħtu
għall-ġenituri ta' dak li sar jara, u staqsewhom: "Dan, li intom qegħdin
tgħidu
li twiled agħma,
dan binkom? Mela
issa kif ġie jara?" Il-ġenituri
tiegħu wieġbu u qalulhom: "Nafu li dan hu
t-tifel tagħna u li twieled agħma, imma kif issa ġie jara, dan ma nafuħx, u anqas ma nafu min fetaħlu għajnejh. Staqslu
lilu: żmien għandu, ħa jitkellem hu għalih
innifsu." Il-ġenituri tiegħu wieġb hekk għaliex beżgħu mil-Lhud, għax il-Lhud kienu ġa ftiehmu bejniethom li
jekk xi ħadd jistqarr li Ġesu' hu l-Messija, isib ruħu barra mis-sinagoga. Kien għalhekk li l-ġenituri wieġbu: "Zmien għandu,
staqsu lilu." Għal darb'oħra reġgħu bagħtu għal dak li kien agħma u qalulu: "Agħti glorja lil Alla! Aħna nafu li dan il-bniedem
huwa midneb." Dak weġibhom: "Jekk hux midneb ma nafx. Ħaġa
waħda naf: li jien kont agħma u issa qiegħed nara."Qalulu:
"Imma hu x'għamillek? Kif fetaħhomlok
għajnejk?" U hu weġibhom:"Ġa għedtilkom u ma
smajtux" Xi tridu tisimgħu iżjed? Jaqaw tridu intom ukoll
issiru dixxipli tiegħu?" U
qabdu jgħajruh u qalulu: "Dak int
dixxiplu tiegħu! Aħna ta' Mose' dixxipli! Aħna nafu li lil Mose' kellmu
Alla, imma dan ma nafux minn fejn hu!"
Weġibhom ir-raġel u qalilhom: "Sewwa" Hawn qiegħed
l-għaġeb, li intom ma tafux minn fejn inqala', u madankollu lili fetaħli għajnejja! Aħna nafu li Alla
mhux se jisma' lill-midinbin;
iżda mbagħad jekk wieħed ikun iqim lil Alla u jagħmel ir-riedu tiegħu, lil dan jisimgħu. Qatt fid-dinja ma nstema' li xi ħadd
fetaħ għajnejn wieħed agħma mit-twelid. Li kieku dan ma kienx ġej
mingħand
Alla, xejn ma kien ikollu ħila jagħmel." Imbagħad qabżu u qalulu: "Int se tgħallem lilna, int li twelidt
dnubiet waħdek." U keċċewh 'il barra. Ġesu'
sema' li keċċewħ
'il barra; sabu u qallu: "Temmen
int f'Bin il-bniedem?" Dak wieġeb
u qallu: "Min hu, Mulej, biex
nemmen fih?" Qallu Ġesu' "Mhux biss rajtu, imma huwa dak stess li
qiegħed
ikellmek." Qallu: "Nemmen, Mulej!" U nxteħet għarkobbtejh quddiemu. Imbagħad Ġesu' qal: "Jien ġejt fid-dinja biex nagħmel
ħaqq,
biex min ma jarax isir jara, u min jara
jagħma." Xi wħud mill-Fariżej li kienu hemm madwaru
semgħuh
jgħid
dan u staqsewh: "Aħna
wkoll għomja?" Weġibhom Ġesu': "Li kieku kontu għomja, ma kontux tkunu ħatja
ta' dnub. Imma issa qegħdin
tgħidu: "Aħna naraw." mela d-dnub tagħkom
għadu
fuqkom." Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
//////////////////////////////////////////////
Dispelling blindness: Seeing in the light of Christ
A reflection for the Fourth Sunday of Lent by Julian Paparella, member of
the editorial team of Fr Thomas Rosica’s “Salt and Light TV” project.
It can be difficult to imagine
what life would be like if we were born blind. How would we function? How would
we perceive the world? But is physical blindness the only form of blindness? Is
it the worst form of blindness?
The Fourth Sunday of Lent shows us
otherwise. We are presented with the Gospel of the poor man born blind (John
9:1-41). The drama unfolds as Jesus arrives on the scene and is immediately
interrogated by the Pharisees. In typical Pharisee fashion they ask, “Whose sin
caused the man to be born blind – his own or his parents’?” Neither, Jesus
responds. Rather, it is so that God’s power can be manifested through him.
Jesus concludes, “I am the light of the world.” He then spits on the ground,
makes some clay, places it on the man’s eyes, and sends him to wash in the Pool
of Siloam. Miraculously the man returns, able to see.
His neighbours are sceptical, “How
could this be?” The man simply replies, “The man called Jesus made clay and
anointed my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went there and
washed and was able to see.” Unconvinced, they take him back to the Pharisees.
There he recounts once more what Jesus did for him. Their strategy is to
discredit Jesus as a sinner. A back-and-forth ensues in which even the man’s
parents are questioned as to whether he was truly born blind. Doubt upon doubt
upon doubt.
Jesus returns to the man, who
proclaims his simple faith, unaffected by the cynicism that swirls around him:
“I do believe, Lord.” The meddling Pharisees make yet another cameo. They ask
Jesus, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” Jesus’ reply is the punch line that
culminates the whole story: “If you were born blind, you would have no sin; but
now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains.’”
What are we to make of all of this?
From the very start, the Pharisees
show us something about our human nature. Their favourite pastime is pointing
their fingers. Surely it is someone’s fault that the man was born blind, so who
is the guilty party – the man or his parents? The man’s neighbours then join in
the same chorus. Rather than rejoicing that their neighbour can finally see
after years of blindness, they are suspicious. Finding no other way of
explaining the situation, the Pharisees resort to accusing Jesus, dismissing
Him as a fraud.
How easy it is to fall into the
same trap. We do not understand, we do not have a hold on the situation, we
feel threatened, and so we resort to being suspicious, accusing others, making
up stories. We get caught up in our own perspective and forget to see the big
picture. We think of our own good at the expense of the good of others. Why can
it be so difficult to rejoice and appreciate the good things others receive?
Why can the gifts and success of others make us feel inadequate or uneasy? What
blinds us from seeing the goodness around us? How can we overcome this
blindness?
Jesus gives the Pharisees the
secret to healing their own blindness before He even begins healing the man
born blind. He tells them: “I am the light of the world.” This is the remedy to
their blindness. The man born blind manifests God’s power by revealing who is
the remedy to our blindness, who enables us truly to see. It is Jesus.
The blindness of the Pharisees is
rooted in their insecurity. They could not accept that Jesus could do any good
for fear that this might jeopardize their status and stature in society. Their
vision was so clouded by their determination to be right that they could not
rejoice when the man born blind was finally healed. They became so engrossed in
trying to be superior to others that their systems could not take the shock of
God’s goodness. Clinging to their own perspective clouded them from seeing
things from God’s perspective.
Jesus is the true light by which
we are able to see ourselves and our neighbour. The way God sees things is as
they truly are. Jesus reveals God’s perspective. He is the antidote to our
cynicism, our disbelief, our doubt and suspicion. These do not allow us to see
reality clearly. They fog our vision and cause us to stumble. When we doubt the
goodness of God, we too can become insecure. We can resort to projecting our
insecurity onto others, trying to put them down so we can come out on top. We
can dismiss them to reassure ourselves. We can fail to see where our true value
lies. Pride and selfishness come from not seeing ourselves as God sees us, and
trying to compensate by being better than others, putting them down to reassure
ourselves. Like the Pharisees, our blindness to seeing the truth about
others comes from our blindness to the truth about ourselves.
The cure is the simple faith of
the man born blind: "I do believe, Lord." This cure allows us to see
the truth about ourselves, to see ourselves in the light of Jesus. In His
light, we see ourselves for who we truly are. We see ourselves as God sees
us. We see that God truly loves us, that God has created us, and that in Jesus
He has come to save us from our sins. We see that God is truly merciful,
that God delights in forgiving us. We see that God's forgiveness is not just
for all of humanity in general, but for each of us, for me personally. We see that
God truly wants what is good for us, that He never tires of welcoming us back
with open arms. We do not see that we are good in His eyes. When we see in the
light of Christ, we begin to truly see.
What
threat did the man born blind pose to the Pharisees? Why couldn’t his
neighbours accept his healing? The healing of the blind man threatened the
blindness of the Pharisees. This blindness clouded them from seeing with the
light that comes from Jesus. Their eyes remained closed to the truth about
themselves, and so they could not accept the truth about God and about others.
Jesus comes to illumine our vision so that we can see the goodness of God – at
work in our lives and the lives of those around us. He opens our eyes so that
we may truly see.
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