Be the Light

Reflection for Sunday, February 9 --  The Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

  Judy Morss

Gospel of Matthew 5:13-16
Jesus said to his disciples:
“You are the salt of the earth.
But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned?
It is no longer good for anything
but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket;
it is set on a lampstand,
where it gives light to all in the house.
Just so, your light must shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your heavenly Father.”
The readings for this Sunday seem to have a common focus on light. Isaiah 58:7-10 tells us "If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday."

Our response to Psalm 112 is "The just man is a light in darkness to the upright" and we are told that ""Light shines through the darkness for the upright; he is gracious and merciful and just."
In Matthew 5:13-16 Jesus tells his disciples: "You are the light of the world.... Just so your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father."

Sometimes when I look around me, I see a lot of darkness. When I listen to the news, I often see and hear even more darkness. But then I will notice a person whose light shines brightly. Like the teenager next door who shovels the sidewalk for his elderly neighbor and takes no pay. Then there is a woman from church who brings a couple of elderly ladies to Mass every Sunday morning. I see our people at Eucharistic Adoration 24 hours a day, seven days a week and the light shines brighter and brighter.

There certainly is a lot of darkness in the world, but when I begin to feel some despair, I look to those people who do not "light their lamp and then put it under a bushel basket." And that makes me refocus on being the light. Our readings for this day tell us what we need to do. We need to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, cloth the naked, encourage and support those who are afflicted.

I have lots questions I need to ask myself. Am I gracious and merciful and just? Do I reach out to those in need? Am I a just person; can my soul be part of the heavenly light? I am commanded by my Savior to become light; to be light. If we all persevere and become the light, we can help put out the darkness. From darkness to light, that's my goal.

With peace and love,
Judy