Dear Parishioner,

Rejoice! Spring is nearly here. Already, the flowers are beginning to come out: the magnolia has already blossomed, as have the crocuses and snowdrops; the daffodils are out, and the garden is beginning to look colourful. The bees are also being active, bringing lots of pollen back to the hive. Even the fish are showing signs of stirring. The first word of the entrance antiphon is ‘Rejoice’, or ‘Laetare’ in Latin, from which we get the name Laetare Sunday. It’s also Mothering Sunday, or Mother’s Day, so some fresh flowers would make a lovely gift, and the sight of them will make most people’s mothers rejoice.

The man born blind in today’s Gospel was healed at the Feast of Tabernacles, which is in the autumn, so he would have had to wait for the spring bloom. All the same, everything he saw, he would have been seeing for the first time. His journey from the Pool of Siloam, at the southwest of Jerusalem, back into the city would have been one of wonder and rejoicing at everything he saw. Even the drooping plants of the end of the dry season would have been a new and joyful sight for him.

All this sight would have helped him see that Jesus was someone special. First, he says to the unbelieving Pharisees that Jesus is a prophet, then he says Jesus is from God. Later, he meets Jesus and calls Him ‘Lord.’ As he uses his sight, he sees more of who Jesus really is. The Pharisees, however, are becoming more blind, because they are not using their sight to see the signs that Jesus is performing.

As we go about our daily lives, let’s use all our senses to appreciate God’s work of creation all around us.

Dom Bede Grey OSB