8th Sunday in Ordinary Time

To All the Parishioners of the Epiphany of the Lord
A Call to Authentic Discipleship: The Heart as the Wellspring of Life

This vocation to perfect love is not restricted to a small group of individuals. The invitation, “go, sell your possessions and give the money to the poor”, and the promise “you will have treasure in heaven”, are meant for everyone, because they bring out the full meaning of the commandment of love for neighbor, just as the invitation which follows, “Come, follow me”, is the new, specific form of the commandment of love of God. Both the commandments and Jesus’ invitation to the rich young man stand at the service of a single and indivisible charity, which spontaneously tends towards that perfection whose measure is God alone: “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mathew 5:48). In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus makes even clearer the meaning of this
perfection: “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:39-45).
(Saint Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, Paragraph No. 18)

Dear parishioners, the above Gospel text presents us with three profound images from Jesus: the blind leading the blind, the splinter in the eye, and the tree bearing fruit. These teachings challenge us to examine our hearts, our words, and our actions as disciples of Christ, namely: a disciple’s heart sees clearly, speaks wisely, and bears Good Fruit. The above Gospel narrative speaks of:

Seeing Clearly: Avoiding Spiritual Blindness
Jesus begins with a warning: “Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit?” (Luke 6:39). This is a call to self-awareness. If we are spiritually blind—ignorant of God’s truth, weighed down by sin, or filled with pride—how can we guide others? Before correcting others, we must seek wisdom, prayer, and humility. Have we sought God’s guidance before offering advice? Are we following Christ, the true Light, or are we being misled by the world’s false wisdom? Let us reflect on these questions.

Removing the Log Before Pointing Out the Splinter
Jesus continues with an even sharper rebuke: “Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?” (Luke 6:41). We often judge others harshly while overlooking our own flaws. This passage does not mean we should never correct others, but rather that true correction must come from a place of humility and self-examination. Before judging others, have we examined our own hearts? Are we acting out of love, or simply pointing fingers? These questions enlighten our minds.

Bearing Good Fruit: The Overflow of the Heart
Jesus concludes with a powerful image of a tree and its fruit: “A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit” (Luke 6:43). Our words and actions reveal the state of our hearts. If we are rooted in Christ—through prayer, Scripture, and love—our lives will naturally bear good fruit. What kind of fruit are we bearing? Are our words and deeds bringing others closer to Christ, or do they sow division and negativity? This Gospel calls us to be authentic disciples—humble, self-aware, and fruitful in love. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to open our eyes, cleanse our hearts, and help us bear good fruit for God’s kingdom. These questions enable us to find answers.

Dear friends, Jesus’ words in this Gospel passage are not just ethical guidelines but a revelation of the inner workings of the human heart. The images of the blind leading the blind, the speck and the log, and the tree and its fruit all point to a singular truth: what is within us will inevitably manifest in our lives. This passage is an invitation to a deep, personal transformation, one that does not merely change outward behavior but reshapes the very core of who we are.

The Blind Leading the Blind: The Need for True Vision
Blindness in Scripture is often a metaphor for spiritual ignorance or self-deception. Jesus warns us that if we do not first seek the light of truth, we will lead others astray. In a world of conflicting voices—media, culture, personal desires—have we rooted ourselves in Christ, the true Light? As parents, teachers, friends, and mentors, are we guiding others with wisdom, or are we leading them with our own unresolved wounds and misguided priorities? The first step in discipleship is to recognize our own need for healing and guidance before attempting to lead others.

The Log and the Speck: The Danger of Self-Deception
This teaching cuts to the core of human nature. We are quick to judge others, often as a way to avoid confronting our own weaknesses. But Jesus invites us to a radical self-examination. The log in our own eye represents our deep-seated sins—pride, resentment, selfishness—that cloud our vision. The speck in our brother’s eye represents the minor faults of others that we magnify, often to feel better about ourselves. Spiritual blindness is not just ignorance—it is a refusal to see. This passage calls us to humility: to first let God heal us before we attempt to heal others.

The Tree and Its Fruit: The Overflow of the Good Gestures
This final image shifts the focus from actions to the heart as the source of all we say and do. What we speak and do flows from what fills our hearts. If our hearts are filled with love, patience, and mercy, our words and actions will reflect that. If they are filled with resentment, envy, or selfishness, our words will betray us. Holiness is not just about avoiding sin—it is about cultivating virtue. If we want to bear good fruit, we must nourish the soil of our soul through prayer, Scripture, the Eucharist, and a genuine relationship with Christ.

Dear Epiphany, this Gospel is a call to inner transformation: to seek Christ’s light, so that we may see clearly before leading others. to examine our own hearts, removing the hidden sins that cloud our vision, to nurture the wellspring of our soul, allowing God’s grace to transform us so that our lives bear fruit for His Kingdom. Let us ask God to heal our blindness, remove our pride, and transform our hearts, so that we may truly live as disciples of Christ.

This passage invites us to pay our attention to the call to “perfect love” in the Christian faith is not just for a select few, but is a universal invitation extended to everyone, as demonstrated by Jesus’ instruction to “sell your possessions and give to the poor” – which highlights the importance of selfless love for others, just as “Come, follow me” represents the call to fully dedicate oneself to God’s love; both actions are seen as expressions of a single, indivisible act of charity, with the ultimate goal of achieving the kind of perfection exemplified by God himself, as stated in Mathew 5:48: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” and further emphasized in Luke 6:36: “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful”.

Let us draw the curtain on our meditation with solemn self-inquiry, and use it for our own standing before God: What fruits are we bringing forth in our lives? Are they, or are they not, fruits of the Spirit? What kind of evidence do our words supply as to the state of our hearts? Do we talk like men and women whose hearts are “right in the sight of God?”–There is no evading the doctrine laid down by our Lord in this passage. Conduct is the grand test of character. Words are one great evidence of the condition of the heart.

Saint Pope John Paul is offering us a key to living our Christian lives. That key is that nothing on this earth should be more important to us than our relationship of love with others and With the Trinitarian God-head.

May God continue to bless the Epiphany Community. Amen!
Fraternally,
Fr. John Peter Lazaar SAC, Pastor