David Steindl-Rast has a very helpful insight into how we come to rest in a growing and deeper awareness of how God is present to us in every moment. In every breath. This ‘awareness’ might be born suddenly and then stay with us for the rest of our lives, or it may come more slowly, opening and unfolding over time. David asks us to notice how some years spring arrives suddenly. We may look out of our window or be driving along the road when we are ambushed by a depth of greenness and colour which wasn’t there last time we looked. Other years, we catch spring in the act of arriving. We notice the early hint of blossom, the grass or the sound of birds returning. The point being that it does not matter whether it is sudden or gradual. All that matters is that we become aware, and deeply aware of the reality in which we live.
Life teaches us that God is always present in every breath we take. God is present in every atom of creation and is the source of its evolution. Sacred Scripture, Poetry and the Mystical Traditions of every faith see this and teach it to those seeking Wisdom.
But the story of the man born blind calls to those who cannot yet see to come to the one who can grant the gift of sight and of insight.
At the beginning of his great work, ‘Auguries of Innocence’ William Blake invites us to,
See a world in a grain of sand, and a Heaven in a Wildflower Hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour.
He emphasises ‘seeing’ the spiritual in and through the material, ‘perceiving’ the infinite ground of the finite world and ‘sensing’ the eternal in the here and now. We complete creation when we look at it with the eye of Love. For some people, this can happen when they have their first baby, or experience the death of a loved one, or when they are at prayer or enjoying nature. But it doesn’t always have to be the Big Bang. And when these peak experiences are yet to visit us, it does not follow that spiritual insight is denied us.
All we have to do is ponder what is before us in and what is in our hearts. Our faithfulness will allow The Sacred to find its own way to open our eyes and reveal itself to us.
Today’s Gospel ends with Jesus going after the blind man who has been driven away by the so-called religious elite. When He finds the man with new eyes, Jesus asks him a question, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ The man does not know who this is so he asks Jesus to tell him. The words Jesus gives to him are powerful. ‘ You are looking at Him, He is speaking to you’. The seeing man gives the only possible response, ‘Lord, I believe’. And he worshipped Him.
