Friday Of the Twenty-Third Week In Ordinary Time
Clear eyes for seeing Christ
Alternative Celebration: Learn more here.
Other Celebrations for this Day:
Liturgical Cycle: C | Lectionary Cycle: I
Introduction
Paul pours out his gratitude for what the grace and mercy of God has made him. God’s grace has perhaps not appeared to us in a way as dramatic as in Paul’s life, but, even though we have not been thrown off a horse by God’s lightning irrupting in our lives, we have very much to be thankful for, and we too are what we are by God’s love. What better way is there to express our gratitude than the eucharist?
The gospel of today has everything to do with seeing: blind people cannot show the way to others, wounded eyes distort what they see in others and cannot see their own defects. We should have a bit of “sympathetic” blindness to the faults of others. And let us look first into our own hearts; this is perhaps the way to love others a bit more.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God, you are just and holy,
and yet you are patient and tolerant with us.
We are but slow-learning students
of our one Teacher, Jesus Christ.
He saw people’s faults,
but he had come not to condemn
but to forgive and save.
Give us clear eyes to look
into our own hearts and consciences,
but dim them with the shades of love
when we see the faults of those around us.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
First Reading
Greeting
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s command—our Savior—and of Christ Jesus, our hope,
to Timothy, my true son in faith. May God the Father and Christ Jesus, our Lord, grant you grace, mercy, and peace.
Paul and Timothy
I thank Christ Jesus, our Lord, who gives me strength, considers me trustworthy, and has appointed me to his service,
although I was a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a fanatical enemy, yet I have been mercifully treated because I acted out of ignorance when I opposed the faith;
and the grace of our Lord was more than enough, along with the faith and love found in Christ Jesus.
Responsorial Psalm
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.”
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your word, O Lord, is truth;
consecrate us in the truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus told his disciples a parable:
“Can a blind person lead another blind person? Surely both will fall into a pit.
A disciple is not above the teacher; but when fully trained, he will be like the teacher.
How can you say to your neighbor, ‘Friend, let me remove this speck from your eye,’ when you can’t remove the log from your own? You hypocrite! First, remove the log from your own eye, and then you’ll see clearly enough to remove the speck from your neighbor’s eye.
Prayers of the Faithful
– That Jesus may show the road to follow to the honest seekers of truth and goodness, that false leaders may not mislead them, we pray:
– That Jesus may show the road to follow to those who easily condemn and are reluctant to forgive and accept people, we pray:
– That Jesus may show us the road to follow, that we may learn to see the evil that is in us and no longer condemn others for the evils we too are inclined to commit, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
your Son Jesus Christ let his light shine
in our darkness;
he opened the eyes of the blind.
Give us your Son here in this eucharist,
that he may open our eyes
to your forgiving love and to your goodness
present in people around us.
Grant this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Prayer after Communion
God our Father,
you let all of us here share,
with our faults and irritating habits,
in the meal of brotherhood and unity
of Jesus Christ your Son.
Help us to accept one another also in everyday life
and to cover each other’s shortcomings
with the mantle of love.
May we overcome evil with good
and bring your peace on this earth,
by the power of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
Eyes that do not look for the evil in others are like the eyes of God. He is not a policeman out to catch us when we do wrong. He forgives, he heals. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Luke 6:39-42
Seeing Clearly with the Eyes of Christ
The words of Jesus in this passage may sound like a series of short sayings, but together they form a clear invitation: look first into your own heart before judging or guiding others.
Jesus says a blind man cannot lead another blind man. How often we try to direct others when our own vision is clouded! This is a call to humility. A disciple cannot go further than the teacher, and so we must choose our guides well—above all, to let Jesus Himself be our Teacher. Only if we follow Him can we help others to walk in the light.
Then comes that image so full of humour and truth: a man with a plank in his eye trying to remove a speck from his brother’s eye. We smile, but we also recognise ourselves. It is easy to see the faults of others, but so difficult to face our own weaknesses. The Gospel tells us: begin with yourself. Let yourself be healed. Allow the Lord to cleanse your sight. Only then will you see clearly enough to help your brother or sister.
This is not an invitation to close in on ourselves, but to grow in authenticity. If we are sincere about our own struggles, we can accompany others with mercy rather than judgment. We discover that everyone is walking a path, at their own pace, in their own way, toward the joy that God desires for them.
Let us ask the Lord today: give us eyes purified by Your mercy, so that we may see ourselves with truth and see others with compassion. Let us become humble guides, not blind ones—disciples who learn from the Master and then share His light.