4 December 2020
Friday of the First Week of Advent
Beautiful are the eyes full of beauty, that is, those that see beauty in everything that is before them. This perception of things beautiful, true, and good is not limited to our visual organs. Quite often it is something that comes from our inmost being.
What’s striking about today’s gospel is that the two blind man see something even before regaining their sight. They perceive Jesus passing by and somehow, they are able to follow him. Something within their hearts saw the beauty, truth, and goodness that Jesus was. This gave them the faith to see Christ’s beautiful face and standing before him their eyes were made beautiful.
Seeing the world with beautiful eyes does not mean overlooking that which is painful, broken, and ugly. Rather, it means not letting creation be defined by these things. When our eyes are touched by Christ, especially within our very self, we can see that which needs healing: tyranny, arrogance, evil, injustice, as the reading from the prophet Isaiah indicates. And we can see the beauty which Jesus has come to restore.
What the two blind men see is too beautiful to keep to themselves. May we strive to see beauty in all of God’s creation, including ourselves. May we see the world with beautiful eyes, and may we share this vision with everyone we encounter.