I am a diocesan priest in the parish of Cyrill and Method in the Archdiocese of Vienna, and a teacher at the March 22, 2020
Light of the World
Are the Chinese responsible for the outbreak of the Coronavirus that is making such a stir and is bringing so much suffering and uncertainty? Or the governments?
Similarly the disciples ask: „Who is responsible for this man’s blindness? It can only be the result of sin? Is he guilty, or his parents?”
It is human and normal to ask the question, why did that happen?
In the encounter with the man born blind, Jesus focuses not on the past, bot on the future. He is not blind, because something was, but that something happen: so that healing take place, to show that whatever happens, God is with us a God of the living, as light in the world. Jesus does not pose the question of guilt, but of purpose and meaning: what meaning can we find or bring into the situation?
This is a an encouraging word and an invitation for us, when we feel unsettled in the face of risks to health or one’s financial situation? As he was present to the man born blind, so he is with us in this uncertain situation. Jesus gave the blind man bodily, but also, and even more, spiritual vision, let him perceive God’s intervention in history in recognizing Jesus as a prophet. God wills to open our eyes, too, to see and create meaning in the present happenings.
The new corona sickness may bring suffering and various worries. Many have relatives who are particularly at risk or are themselves at risk, some are out of a job or worry about keeping their job.
The sickness and its spreading is however also an occasion to rethink various things, on the political level, such as globalization and the foundation, but also with a vew to our daily life.
We experience and show much solidarity precisely in these present times, the willingness to sacrifice to protect or to help others. And we may take joy and consolation in this. God is at work here, too.
It was hope for healing that moved the blind man to obey Jesus’s command, to go and wash himself. The hope that fills our hearts, springing from faith in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the victory over death itself, can help us to keep a positive, even confident and joyful attitude. In our daily work that continues, in taking various precautions, in helping others in this time, we have confidence: the LORD is with us, in HIM is our hope and our salvation. Let us encourage and enhearten one another with this hope. Some things we have to bear, but we can and should see various positive aspects of the changes and developments taking place.
Let us remain in contact with one another, and let us pray for one another, that Jesus, the light of the world, enlighten our communion and this present time.