In last week's gospel we heard of one of the few "success stories" in Jesus public ministry. The Samaritan woman at Jacob's well – at the prompting of Jesus – freely and willingly made an act of faith in him. Jesus told her that the Messiah could give her a kind of water that would quench her thirst forever. She asked who he was so she could ask; Jesus replied that it was he himself; and she said: "I do believe that you are the Messiah, I do believe that you can give me this water! Give me this water!" And Jesus did! She was happy; and he was so happy that she responded to his thirst for her faith!
The woman represents the Church – made up of Gentiles, just as she was a Gentile, a foreigner, a Samaritan. Jesus thirsts for faith from the Gentiles (because he was getting very little of it from his own people), – and by the act of faith of this woman – the faith of the Gentiles throughout the world was credited as valid and effective – for all ages.
Today we have the story of a man born blind, who was given his sight as a totally free gift, by Jesus who saw him and was moved with pity for him!
Later, the man got entangled in a controversy with the Pharisees who were trying to trip Jesus up. Jesus cured this man on the Sabbath – which was not something allowed according to Jewish law. The man's response was that Jesus was a prophet! He must have had authority to do what he did! This was the "wrong answer" according to the Pharisees who scolded the man for lecturing them on points of religious law and customs and threw him out of the synagogue.
Jesus sought the man out after he had been expelled by the Pharisees and asked him if he believed in the Son of Man. The man said: Who is he, sir that I may believe in him? At this point Jesus said something which he could not have said before (because the man was blind before) – "You have seen him – the one speaking with you is he." The man looked at Jesus and replied: "I do believe, Lord," and he worshiped him.
Once again Jesus is victorious – and this time with his own people! The man born blind we assume to be an Israelite.
The message here is that: EVERYONE IS BLIND TO THE THINGS OF GOD, until GOD GIVES SIGHT – until God gives light – the internal light of faith – to be coupled with reason. This story then is about the spiritual blindness that we are all born with which Jesus alone can "cure" "remove" "transform," "redeem."
And Jesus is still looking around for those whose life is darkness, so that he can give them the tremendous gift of light, of faith, of sight! He does this by the action of the Holy Spirit who gathers together members of the Church! It is the sacraments that transform our darkness into light. And as St. Paul tells the Ephesians in the second reading today: you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth! Let everything you do stand the test of being held up in the full brightness of the noonday sun for all to see! For in the end – all will be seen – on the Final Day at the Last Judgment!
Just as the Spirit rushed upon David – who was chosen to be King of Israel – from whose royal line Jesus would be born – this same Spirit was sent by Jesus and his Father to rush upon us – since the day of our Baptism and Confirmation – so that we can live upright lives all the days of our lives! And that one day we will be qualified to dwell in the house of the Lord, forever.
The Lord is truly our Shepherd – and all he is looking for are responsive, faithful and loving sheep to lead! He will refresh our souls beside restful waters when we need it! He will give us the sight that we need in order to walk through dark valleys and not be afraid! We can trust him, we can depend on him, we can follow him!
Jesus thirsts for our faith!
Let us not refuse him!
Our eternal life depends upon it!
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