Through what lens do we view the world? I saw two pictures from Pope Francis visit to the United States this past week that brought this phrase back to my mind. The first was of an elderly woman watching the Holy Father motor by while all who surrounded her were snapping photos with their phones, ipads and other devices. The second was of the Papal Mass where some of the concelebrating priests were doing the same.

One of the challenges we have in our faith life is to see with the eyes of God. Jesus reminds us of this again and again. (Mt 13:16, Mk 8:18) It is not a challenge that has occurred only in the past few years but has been the struggle of men and women throughout salvation history. And it is not a problem of picture taking. I like pictures and I enjoy looking through old family and community photos learning and sharing our history. It only becomes a problem when we permit it to dissolve our focus on what is in front of us and when it distracts us from the actions of service and worship in our lives. And trust me, I am not immune to this sin and I also believe it is not a generational thing because I know many grandparents who are just as bad as their teen grandchildren in putting the photo in front of the interaction.

I believe that it is more the challenge of being childlike in our actions. (I think Jesus has one or two things to say about this) As children grow and learn in the world and in their faith they don’t use cameras or videos…they look in wonder with eyes wide open. I think about how easy it is to loose yourself in the gaze of a child as they look at you, or how lovers can stare endlessly into the eyes of their beloved. We learn to place the filters and distractions in front of us as we blur the beauty of God and miss the wonder of life limiting our vision to the three-inch screen in front of our eyes.

I remember looking through a friend’s photo album of a trip they had taken several years ago. It must have been 100 pages and as I went through the album I noticed that there were very few “photos” taken by my friend and his wife. There were postcards, maps, and other items of their journey with photos interspersed. I never asked them about it but I can imagine that they chose to “see” rather than “take” their journey with the eyes of life. They gazed with the eyes of a child and saw the beauty of God’s creation surrounding them.

Sin tempts us to take, grab hold and put away while love invites us to see, to embrace and let go as we travel and experience anew the grace, peace and blessing of our Father through Jesus’ presence and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

God Bless

Fr. Mark