Ecclesiastes 1:2-11 / Luke 9:7-9
It is said that seeing is believing. Generally speaking that may be true, especially when we have heard about something and then finally got to see it for ourselves with our own eyes.
Yet there may be other instances where seeing may not necessarily lead to believing.
In the gospel we heard that Herod was anxious to see Jesus; he had this longing to see who this Jesus was that he heard about.
But when Herod finally got to see Jesus during His passion, he didn't think much about who he was looking at.
Perhaps the pathetic state of being condemned led Herod to think that Jesus was just a shooting star that will fade off into the darkness.
Yet the 1st reading makes us reflect deeper on what we are seeing around us.
Images of the sun rising and setting, the wind blowing, the waters of the river flowing into the sea are telling us something about the reality of our lives.
Yet it is not about how much our eyes have seen or how much our ears have heard.
It is a matter of how much our hearts are filled - filled with mystery.
In the Eucharist we see things like bread and wine and we hear prayers.
May our hearts also be filled with the mystery of God's love.