Seeing better begins with being washed

The blind man does not recover his sight merely by understanding an idea about light. Jesus tells him to wash, and in that obedient gesture a new life begins. Something similar happens to us. We can read, think, and talk a great deal, yet still have clouded vision if we do not let God wash away what weighs us down inside. The sacraments are not religious decoration. They are places where Christ truly acts. In Confession, especially, you do not merely remember that God forgives: you receive that forgiveness and see again with greater freedom.