The other day’s Mass reading was from Luke 11:29-32: “While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them, ‘This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah.'”
Does that mean that all signs are evil?
Hardly. The issue seems one related to those who don’t believe in God unless they are given a sign.
In fact, the day of the reading was October 13–anniversary of the sun miracle at Fátima, where three secrets were given, one of which prophesied a “great sign” that would announce a second world war (which a gigantic, unusual display of the northern lights in 1938 did).
Concerned about direction, and anxious to spot land, Christopher Columbus and his crew at one point spotted a strange light that to this day has not been explained definitively.
This was on October 11, 1492, and was described, in his own journal, as “a small wax candle that rose and lifted up, which to few seemed to be an indication of land.” Academics have come up with various potential explanations: that it was tar torches carried by natives, or the bioluminescence of protozoa along the rock (this latter explanation discarded due to Columbus’s depiction of it as from a point source, and also the timing: such protozoa only radiate lights after a full moon; this was near the first quarter). Whatever it was, the worried crew soon caught sight of land.
Clearly, Heaven is into signs. There are sun miracles, healings, rosaries that turn gold, and other signs of the supernatural at places like Medjugorje and Lourdes: countless of these. In our own lives, the appearance of a butterfly at a key moment may indicate the approbation of Heaven, or a cardinal may be related to someone recently deceased, or a person may simply say something that against all odds pertains to a problem or question we have. It may be an unexpected call.
But as a priest pointed out the other day, what we should focus on is being signs ourselves: showing others the existence of God–a sign of His existence–by the way we conduct ourselves.
It could be simply smiling at someone.
Saying hello to a stranger.
Offering money to someone homeless.
Holding the door for all of those behind you.
Visiting a person in a nursing home.
Volunteering at a food bank.
Giving a stranger a prayer card.
Forgiving someone.
Being patient with customer-service people who are struggling with their accents.
The list is potentially endless and comes down to simply demonstrating love, concern, and consideration to others.
Can it be the way the sun or moon or a star shines?
Of course it can. But:
Just as Moses’ face shone after encountering God on Mount Sinai, so too can our daily prayer, silence, and surrender make us reflect something not of ourselves. A person steeped in prayer doesn’t need to quote Scripture constantly; their presence, peace, and demeanor speak volumes. Being a sign of God begins with being in God’s presence and that comes through prayer from the depths of our hearts.
[resources: A Life of Blessings]
https://bookstore.spiritdaily.com/search?q=life+of+blessings