Eyes That See

First Reading: Isaiah 11:1-10

On that day,
A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him:
a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
A Spirit of counsel and of strength,
a Spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
But he shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land’s afflicted.
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Justice shall be the band around his waist,
and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.

Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.
The baby shall play by the cobra’s den,
and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair.
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD,
as water covers the sea.

On that day,
The root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the nations,
The Gentiles shall seek out,
for his dwelling shall be glorious.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17

R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
He shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.

Gospel: Luke 10:21-24

Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said,
“I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden these things
from the wise and the learned
you have revealed them to the childlike.
Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father.
No one knows who the Son is except the Father,
and who the Father is except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”

Turning to the disciples in private he said,
“Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
For I say to you,
many prophets and kings desired to see what you see,
but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”

NAB

This afternoon my daughter was circling the neighborhood trying to sell jelly beans for a school fundraiser. Her route ended when a man told her he didn't believe she was being truthful, accusing her of faking her school fundraiser for her own benefit. She walked back up the road with me in tears, feeling ashamed and ugly. In her little Catholic school jumper and white polo shirt, selling jelly beans. Isn't that picture so wrong?

It does help me to glimpse, for a moment, the way our Father sees us when earthly justice fails. My heart broke for her, for the lack of charity this stranger showed her. And putting myself in the position of the accuser, what does a distorted view of God look like compared to one that is true? That man at the door wasn't seeking to know this little girl, he was only willing to cast her as whatever he assumed her to be. No questions, no insights, no evidence, no sight. Blessed are the eyes that see . . . says today's Gospel reading.

Our faith reminds us that we encounter Christ every day. Sometimes in our bosses, sometimes in our mothers, sometimes in our babies, sometimes in the little neighborhood girl, selling jelly beans. Am I really trying to see them as Christ? And beyond that, am I trying to see through them to Christ himself, standing in the background like the mother of the little girl at the door?

Am I really trying to see others as Christ?Click to tweet

Today let that be the mission. To see innocently like little ones, to hear like them, too—with the eyes, ears, hands, minds, and feet of faith and purity of heart. No assumptions or accusations of the ones before us—only loving openness to know, to love, and to serve. Wide eyed and bright, like children, with eyes that see.

Blythe Fike is the wife of Kirby and mother of 7 smallish kids. She loves the quiet life in small town SoCal. You can find out more about her here.