Spiritual Blindness
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March 18, 2023The healing described in today’s Gospel occurred when Jesus came to Jerusalem with his disciples to participate in the feast of Tabernacles or the festival of tents (Sukkoth). As part of the celebration, four huge golden four-branched candelabra were set up and lit in the courts of the Temple - each was 50 cubits (=75 feet) high. The Mishnah says that “there was not a courtyard in all of Jerusalem” that did not gleam with the light from the Temple menorahs when they were lit for Sukkoth.
Just like the menorah to all parts of the temple, the Light of Jesus will shine to all. He is the Light of the world. Isaiah prophesied, and the Jewish people of that era believed, that when the Messiah comes, he would heal blindness and other diseases. In healing the blind man, Jesus demonstrated that he is the fulfillment of the prophecy. But more than bringing him from darkness to light (physical healing), Jesus gave this man the light of faith.
In the context of the Lenten RCIA scrutinies, the Church challenges us to see this man’s journey from darkness to light as a paradigm for our own spiritual lives - from the darkness of doubt to belief (for catechumens preparing for Baptism); from the darkness of sin to the light of repentance, mercy, and freedom (for those of us already baptized). Ironically, we can notice another type blindness in the Gospel. The Pharisees suffered from spiritual blindness. They were blind to the Holy Spirit. They had the externals of religion but lacked the spirit of Jesus’ love. They were also blind to the suffering and pain right before their eyes. They refused to see pain and injustice. There was no compassion in their hearts. In short, they were truly blind both to the Holy Spirit and to the human misery around them.
Spiritual blindness is very common in modern times. Perhaps, the most awful disease in our country today is the spiritual blindness which refuses to see the truths of God’s revelation, and even to admit that God exists. Similarly, we also have personal blind-spots - in our marriages, our parenting, our work habits, and our personalities. We are often blind to the presence of the Triune God dwelling within us and fail to appreciate His presence in others. Even practicing Christians can be blind to the poverty, injustice, and pain around them.
Let us remember, however, that Jesus wants to heal our blindness. We need to ask him to remove from us the root causes of our blindness: self-centeredness, greed, anger, hatred, prejudice, jealousy, addiction to evil habits, and hardness of heart. Let us pray to St. Joseph, whose feast is today, that we may be pure and chaste in all aspects of our lives. Amen.
