Pastor's Note from Fr. Szparagowski 📝

Dear St. Philip Neri Family and Friends,

We give praise and thanks to God for the graces and blessings He has given us. Today, the Fourth Sunday of Lent, is traditionally called Laetare Sunday—a Sunday of rejoicing in the middle of Lent. The rose color that may be used at Mass reminds us that Easter is drawing closer. In the middle of our Lenten journey, the Church invites us to pause and reflect on the great theme of today's readings: seeing clearly through the light of God.

In the Gospel, we hear the powerful story of the man born blind. The disciples begin by asking a question that many people still ask today: "Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" They are looking for someone to blame. But Jesus immediately shifts the focus. He tells them that the man's blindness will become an opportunity for the works of God to be revealed.

Jesus then heals the man, giving him sight. But what follows is just as important as the miracle itself. As the man gradually comes to see physically, others around him—especially the Pharisees—become increasingly blind spiritually. This is the great irony of the Gospel. The man who was blind begins to see the truth, while those who claim to see remain in darkness.

At first, the healed man simply says that "the man called Jesus" healed him. Later, when questioned again, he calls Jesus a prophet. And finally, when he meets Jesus again, he proclaims his faith and worships Him as the Son of Man. His sight grows deeper and deeper. His physical healing leads to spiritual vision.

Meanwhile, the Pharisees investigate the miracle again and again. They question the man, his parents, and even argue among themselves. Yet despite all the evidence before them, they refuse to believe. Their hearts are closed. The real blindness in this Gospel is not physical blindness. The real blindness is the refusal to see God at work.

Saint Paul speaks about this in the second reading when he tells the Ephesians: "You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord." Notice he does not say we were merely in darkness. He says we were darkness. But through Christ we have been brought into the light. That is exactly what happens at baptism. In the early Church, baptism was sometimes called "illumination." The newly baptized received a candle lit from the Easter candle as a symbol that they had been brought into Christ's light.

This Gospel is traditionally read during Lent because Lent is a time for us to examine our own sight. Not our physical sight—but our spiritual vision. Are there ways in which we may still be blind? Sometimes we can be blind to God's presence in our daily lives. Sometimes we can be blind to the needs of others around us. Sometimes we can be blind to our own sins or weaknesses. Like the Pharisees, we may think we see clearly, when in reality we still need Christ to open our eyes.

The good news is that Jesus desires to heal our blindness just as much as He healed the man in the Gospel. He wants to bring light into the places of darkness in our hearts. This is why the Church gives us Lent: through prayer, fasting, and charity, we allow Christ to restore our vision.

Every time we come to confession, every time we sincerely pray, every time we reach out in love to someone in need, the light of Christ grows stronger within us.

At the end of the Gospel, Jesus says something striking: "I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind." In other words, those who humbly admit their need for God will receive true sight. But those who believe they have no need of Him risk remaining in darkness.

The man born blind shows us the path of faith. He was open, honest, and courageous. Even when others rejected him, he stayed faithful to the truth he had experienced. As we continue our Lenten journey toward Easter, we ask the Lord for the same grace.

"Lord, help us to see."

Help us to see Your presence in our lives.

Help us to see the needs of others.

Help us to see the truth of the Gospel.

And may the light of Christ grow brighter in our hearts, so that when Easter arrives, we may truly rejoice as people who walk in His light.

Please invite someone to Mass today.

St. Philip Neri, Pray for us!

Have a Blessed Day

Fr. Szparagowski