The passage we read today for our gospel is widely recognized as one of the master pieces of Johannine story telling. This is the sixth of the seven "signs" in John's gospel. It is the primary biblical text on blindness. It is far longer than any other, and John uses the case to provide a message about our being spiritually born blind.
I would divide today’s gospel reading into two sections. First section is the actual miracle itself. Second part is the reaction of the people to that miracle. How each person was compelled to respond to the central challenge the miracle presented, and how well or badly they responded. There are friends and neighbours first, then the parents and the Pharisees and above all the blind man himself. I prefer to concentrate on only two people I. e. man born-blind and the Pharisees.
The miracle itself is used only as a launch-pad for a greater thing to come. Last week the thirst for water at Jacob’s well was used as a launch-pad for discussion or discovery of “the life-giving water“. In the same way the physical blindness and healing in today’s gospel is only a launch-pad for a discussion on spiritual blindness or healing of the spiritual blindness. This story contains the journey of two people in two opposite directions. The man born blind moves from blindness to the full sight but this journey is also marked in contrast with the growing blindness of the Pharisees. Both start from the same point but head towards opposite directions. The starting point is the healing of the physical blindness of the man born-blind.
Let us first of all look at journey of the blind man himself. Even after he was cured physically he was still spiritually blind. Because he could not recognise who Jesus actually is. But he journeys through and discovers who he is. Doubted by friends, abandoned by his parents, questioned, insulted, and caste out by the Pharisees, he has stumbled from belief in Jesus as “a man”(v.11), to “a prophet” (v.17), to a suggestion that he must be “from God”(v.33) And finally he ends up prostrating before him saying “Lord, I believe” (v.38). It is here that he is fully cured of not only his physical blindness but also spiritual blindness. He is clearly able to see who Jesus is.
Now let us move on to the Pharisees. They move from spiritual blindness to intellectual and physical blindness. It may sound strange but that’s what is happening.
Once they witness the miracle, the Pharisees become divided, and so cannot decide the case. The evidence that the blind man can now see is not important to them. They ignore the core evidential issue, that a man who heals a man blind from birth must be the messiah. These men are only interested in their regular habits of thinking, about the "legal principles" for deciding cases involving suspected heresy. But principles often conflict, with one person emphasising one principle, another one asserting another. For some, what matters is whether the Sabbath law, as they understood it, had been broken. Others however are bothered by another principle: how can a sinful man do such signs, because only God could be behind them, and God does not listen to sinners (Ps 34:15-16). Which principle is the more important becomes the crux of their argument. They all miss the important issue that this is a messianic sign, which demands a faith response. They close their eyes to the sign.
When the man healed of his blindness tries to teach them the true logic saying “Only a man of God can heal. He healed me. Therefore he must be a man of God.” They say, “Get lost, you man born in utter sin. You are trying to teach us.” They close their mind and intellect. Thus they become intellectually blind. And they refuse to acknowledge the miracle they have witnessed, thus they even go physically blind. What else we can call it.
If you ask me I say all of us have blind- spots in our lives. All of need healing. We all have blind spots -- in our marriages, our parenting, our work habits, and our personalities. We often wish to remain in the dark, preferring darkness to light. It is even possible for the religious people in our day to be like the Pharisees: religious in worship, in frequenting sacraments, in prayer life, in tithing, and in the knowledge of the Bible – but blind to the poverty, injustice and pain around them. Let us remember, however, that Jesus wants to heal our blind spots. We need to ask Him to remove from us the root causes which blind us: namely, self-centeredness, greed, anger, hatred, prejudice, jealousy, addiction to evil habits and a hardness of heart. Let us pray: “God our Father, help us see Christ more clearly, love him more dearly and follow him more nearly.” Amen.
I would divide today’s gospel reading into two sections. First section is the actual miracle itself. Second part is the reaction of the people to that miracle. How each person was compelled to respond to the central challenge the miracle presented, and how well or badly they responded. There are friends and neighbours first, then the parents and the Pharisees and above all the blind man himself. I prefer to concentrate on only two people I. e. man born-blind and the Pharisees.
The miracle itself is used only as a launch-pad for a greater thing to come. Last week the thirst for water at Jacob’s well was used as a launch-pad for discussion or discovery of “the life-giving water“. In the same way the physical blindness and healing in today’s gospel is only a launch-pad for a discussion on spiritual blindness or healing of the spiritual blindness. This story contains the journey of two people in two opposite directions. The man born blind moves from blindness to the full sight but this journey is also marked in contrast with the growing blindness of the Pharisees. Both start from the same point but head towards opposite directions. The starting point is the healing of the physical blindness of the man born-blind.
Let us first of all look at journey of the blind man himself. Even after he was cured physically he was still spiritually blind. Because he could not recognise who Jesus actually is. But he journeys through and discovers who he is. Doubted by friends, abandoned by his parents, questioned, insulted, and caste out by the Pharisees, he has stumbled from belief in Jesus as “a man”(v.11), to “a prophet” (v.17), to a suggestion that he must be “from God”(v.33) And finally he ends up prostrating before him saying “Lord, I believe” (v.38). It is here that he is fully cured of not only his physical blindness but also spiritual blindness. He is clearly able to see who Jesus is.
Now let us move on to the Pharisees. They move from spiritual blindness to intellectual and physical blindness. It may sound strange but that’s what is happening.
Once they witness the miracle, the Pharisees become divided, and so cannot decide the case. The evidence that the blind man can now see is not important to them. They ignore the core evidential issue, that a man who heals a man blind from birth must be the messiah. These men are only interested in their regular habits of thinking, about the "legal principles" for deciding cases involving suspected heresy. But principles often conflict, with one person emphasising one principle, another one asserting another. For some, what matters is whether the Sabbath law, as they understood it, had been broken. Others however are bothered by another principle: how can a sinful man do such signs, because only God could be behind them, and God does not listen to sinners (Ps 34:15-16). Which principle is the more important becomes the crux of their argument. They all miss the important issue that this is a messianic sign, which demands a faith response. They close their eyes to the sign.
When the man healed of his blindness tries to teach them the true logic saying “Only a man of God can heal. He healed me. Therefore he must be a man of God.” They say, “Get lost, you man born in utter sin. You are trying to teach us.” They close their mind and intellect. Thus they become intellectually blind. And they refuse to acknowledge the miracle they have witnessed, thus they even go physically blind. What else we can call it.
If you ask me I say all of us have blind- spots in our lives. All of need healing. We all have blind spots -- in our marriages, our parenting, our work habits, and our personalities. We often wish to remain in the dark, preferring darkness to light. It is even possible for the religious people in our day to be like the Pharisees: religious in worship, in frequenting sacraments, in prayer life, in tithing, and in the knowledge of the Bible – but blind to the poverty, injustice and pain around them. Let us remember, however, that Jesus wants to heal our blind spots. We need to ask Him to remove from us the root causes which blind us: namely, self-centeredness, greed, anger, hatred, prejudice, jealousy, addiction to evil habits and a hardness of heart. Let us pray: “God our Father, help us see Christ more clearly, love him more dearly and follow him more nearly.” Amen.
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