Day of Prayer for Special Needs Children and their Carers
26 March 2015
As Jesus went along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, for him to have been born blind?’ ‘Neither he nor his parents sinned,’ Jesus answered ‘he was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed in him.
‘As long as the day lasts
I must carry out the work of the one who sent me;
the night will soon be here when no one can work.
As long as I am in the world
I am the light of the world.’
Having said this, he spat on the ground, made a paste with the spittle, put this over the eyes of the blind man, and said to him, ‘Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam’ (a name that means ‘sent’). So the blind man went off and washed himself, and came away with his sight restored.
His neighbours and people who earlier had seen him begging said, ‘Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?’ Some said, ‘Yes, it is the same one.’ Others said, ‘No, he only looks like him.’ The man himself said, ‘I am the man.’ So they said to him, ‘Then how do your eyes come to be open?’ ‘The man called Jesus’ he answered ‘made a paste, daubed my eyes with it and said to me, “Go and wash at Siloam”; so I went, and when I washed I could see.’ They asked, ‘Where is he?’ ‘I don’t know’ he answered.
They brought the man who had been blind to the Pharisees. It had been a sabbath day when Jesus made the paste and opened the man’s eyes, so when the Pharisees asked him how he had come to see, he said, ‘He put a paste on my eyes, and I washed, and I can see.’ Then some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man cannot be from God: he does not keep the sabbath.’ Others said, ‘How could a sinner produce signs like this?’ And there was disagreement among them. So they spoke to the blind man again, ‘What have you to say about him yourself, now that he has opened your eyes?’ ‘He is a prophet’ replied the man. However, the Jews would not believe that the man had been blind and had gained his sight, without first sending for his parents and asking them, ‘Is this man really your son who you say was born blind? If so, how is it that he is now able to see?’ His parents answered, ‘We know he is our son and we know he was born blind, but we do not know how it is that he can see now, or who opened his eyes. He is old enough: let him speak for himself.’ His parents spoke like this out of fear of the Jews, who had already agreed to expel from the synagogue anyone who should acknowledge Jesus as the Christ. This was why his parents said, ‘He is old enough; ask him.’
So the Jews again sent for the man and said to him, ‘Give glory to God! For our part, we know that this man is a sinner.’ The man answered, ‘I don’t know if he is a sinner; I only know that I was blind and now I can see.’ They said to him, ‘What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?’ He replied, ‘I have told you once and you wouldn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it all again? Do you want to become his disciples too?’ At this they hurled abuse at him: ‘You can be his disciple,’ they said ‘we are disciples of Moses: we know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.’ The man replied, ‘Now here is an astonishing thing! He has opened my eyes, and you don’t know where he comes from! We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but God does listen to men who are devout and do his will. Ever since the world began it is unheard of for anyone to open the eyes of a man who was born blind; if this man were not from God, he couldn’t do a thing.’ ‘Are you trying to teach us,’ they replied ‘and you a sinner through and through, since you were born!’ And they drove him away.
Jesus heard they had driven him away, and when he found him he said to him, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ ‘Sir,’ the man replied ‘tell me who he is so that I may believe in him.’ Jesus said, ‘You are looking at him; he is speaking to you.’ The man said, ‘Lord, I believe’, and worshipped him.
Jesus said:
‘It is for judgement
that I have come into this world,
so that those without sight may see
and those with sight turn blind.’
Hearing this, some Pharisees who were present said to him, ‘We are not blind, surely?’ Jesus replied:
‘Blind? If you were,
you would not be guilty,
but since you say, “We see,”
your guilt remains.’
Reflection
By Fidji Rivera-Sarmiento
But I have to commend those parents who readily exclaim, “Blessing ito.”
Reflection
By Fidji Rivera-Sarmiento
“Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible
through him.”
“Teacher Fidji, why my child? Why us? What have we done? Sumpa ba ito?”
Being a special education teacher for 10 years, I have always been asked this question,
usually accompanied with tears. And clueless as I can be, I consistently go back to this
Gospel.
Having an exceptional child is not an easy task. From the emotional turmoil to the financial
factors, it is understandable for some to consider it a curse rather than a blessing.
And this Gospel clearly lays it down. It is so that the works of God be made visible through
him.
For a child with special needs, every day is a miracle. Beyond the familial struggles, the
blessings of strong family ties, inexplicable joy, and utter reliance and appreciation to
someone bigger than themselves are very discernible. The adage “It takes a village to raise
a child,” is very true to this situation. From the family, to the physicians, to the therapists, to
the educators, all working together for the welfare of that exceptional child.That is if they had
enough money.
enough money.
So today, I ask that you extend a hand to a family with a special needs child especially the
under privileged ones. Help in any way you can. Be a listening ear, a reliever so the mother
can spend an hour or two for herself, be an agent of awareness, research about the many
disabilities. You don’t have to be special child specialist to reflect the goodness of God.
Prayer
Here’s a prayer shared to me by one of my students’ parents. Please share it too.
Prayer for Parenting a Special-Needs Child
Dear Lord,
My heart is so tender before you.
At times, the challenges can feel so heavy,
the constant care can be emotionally exhausting and lonely.
Help me to see [name’s] limitations as limitless opportunities
for me to find strength and courage in you.
Help [name’s] disability to become my ability
to serve you in such a profound way.
Help me to see through your eyes
the incredible blessing
that you have created [name] to be.
Amen.
(Penny Hanlon)
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