Gospel Reflection - 4th Sunday of Lent, Year A

For today's Gospel reflection, I am revisiting a reflection I wrote three years ago, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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March 22, 2020
At the beginning of today’s Gospel (John 9:1-41), Jesus’ disciples ask Him, in regards to the blind man, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus’ reply, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.”

I was struck while listening to the homily during a televised Mass this morning, that a similar question can be raised in the uncertainty amid the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. We may be tempted to ask why this is happening in the world? Is it a punishment from God & if so, who sinned?

I see all the criticisms of our government leaders either not doing enough early on or imposing unnecessary restrictions. I see the empty shelves in grocery stores & extra money being withdrawn from bank accounts, signs of fearful citizens not knowing if & when food, household goods, & money will run out. Businesses, schools, & churches have closed in an attempt to avoid the spread of Covid-19.

But I’m also seeing some good coming out of these trying times. In one neighborhood, good Samaritans were performing random acts of kindness & leaving bags of groceries on porches. I see people on Facebook offering prayers for one another, sharing when certain items are available, offering to shop for the elderly, or letting others know they have more of an item & are willing to share. One pizza restaurant manager braved the flooding waters, sometimes knee-deep, to deliver pizza to an elderly woman.

Just this past Friday, Ohio’s Attorney General issued orders to all Ohio abortion facilities to immediately cease all non-essential & elective surgical abortions. According to the Ohio Department of Health (https://odh.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odh/know-our-programs/vital-statistics/resources/vs-abortionreport2018), there were 20,425 abortions in 2018. That’s an average of 1,702 per month. So, even with the severity & devastating effects of Covid-19, many lives will end up being saved. And who knows…one of those lives may be the person who will one day find the cure for Cancer or Covid-19!

Families are spending more time together…praying, getting out to take walks, playing games. One of the sweetest photos I saw online was of a grandfather & his grandson. In a social distancing effort, the grandfather was sitting in a chair by his front door while the young boy stood on the porch. On the glass door separating them was a Tic-Tac-Toe game outlined in tape. They used dry erase or washable markers to play the game together.

While we are all sinners, this pandemic is most certainly not a punishment from God. I don’t think He wants this pandemic any more than we do. By trying to see the good in this, we can stay focused on His love for us & spread that love to those around us. As Jesus said in the Gospel, “…it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” We need to become the Light of Christ during this time, a beacon of hope to others.