And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him

 

 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  

 

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"   Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."   Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."

 

- John 9:1-17 

 

In our present cycle of readings, Jesus is attending the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), which commemorates the time that Israel wandered in the desert of Sinai.  It is an eight-day autumn festival with many different ceremonies; it is the last, great day of the Festival, and it is also the final year of Christ's earthly life.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus said, "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."  Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'   Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

 

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  In today's reading occurs the healing which is the sixth sign of seven in John's Gospel.   In order to understand the significance properly within the context of the Scriptures, we should note that of all the miracle stories in the Bible, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth (see verse 32).  In other words, and particularly in the context of the ancient world, his blindness was not due to illness or accident, something which had a potential for natural healing.  My study Bible says that the blind man is symbolic of all humanity:  all people need illumination by Christ, the Light of the world.  This sign is traditionally seen as an illustration of baptism, which is also called "holy illumination" in the Orthodox tradition.  As Easter (or Pascha) is the traditional day to receive catechumens into the Church, the lessons which follow Pascha reflect a baptismal theology; this passage concerning this sixth sign (John 9:1-38) are read on the sixth Sunday of Pascha, which is also called the Sunday of the Blind Man.

 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  Christ rejects the assumption (which was common in the ancient world) that all troubles and maladies are necessary the consequence of personal sin or even the sins of one's parents (see Exodus 20:5; Deuteronomy 5:9; contrast Ezekiel 18:19-21).  My study Bible comments that although suffering can be the direct result of personal sin, this is most certainly not always the case.  In this particular instance, this man's blindness provides the occasion for the works of God to be revealed -- it was not directly related to the man's personal sins.

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  My study Bible writes that the work that people do consists of faith (John 6:29), good deeds (John 5:29), and repentance (John 12:40).  The night that comes is a reference both to the time after a person's death and to the age to come, when there is no longer an opportunity to express faith.  According to St. John Chrysostom, on that day there will not be faith, but all will submit, whether willingly or unwillingly.  The unprecedented healing of the man born blind is a confirmation of Christ's claim that He is the light of the world (see also John 8:12).

 

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay."  Here my study Bible cites St. Irenaeus, who sees in this mixture of clay and saliva a type of the creation of humanity from the earth (Genesis 2:7).  Christ reveals His divinity by restoring part of creation using the same material with which He created humanity in the beginning.  

And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.   My study Bible explains to us that the pool of Siloam was on the outskirts of Jerusalem,  which was a considerable distance from the temple.  From this pool water was taken for the rites which are connected with the Feast of Tabernacles which Jesus is attending.  On this final day of the Feast, water drawn from the pool of Siloam was taken to be mixed with wine and poured at the foot of the altar, both as purification and also in remembrance of the water which flowed from the rock struck by Moses (Exodus 17:1-7).  Siloam, translated, Sent, is a symbol of Christ, my study Bible says, the One who is sent by the Father (John 5:36, 20:21).  The healing of the blind man confirms Christ's claim to be the light of the world, and is a manifestation of that "light" which "illumined" his sight (John 8:12).  So also, making use of the pool of Siloam confirms and manifests that Christ is One sent to offer the true purification of the temple and those who worship in it, as well as "rivers of living water" (John 7:38), the gift of the Holy Spirit and the new life accompanying this gift.

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"   Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."   Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."  My study Bible comments that just as the Pharisees had ignored the healing of the paralytic and focused only on the perceived violation of the Sabbath (John 5:10-16), so here many of them cannot see the glory of God through their own prejudices.  Note that Christ's word and actions create a division among them (see Matthew 10:35, Luke 12:53, Hebrews 4:12).

In tomorrow's reading, the Gospel will delve further into the response of the healed blind man (and his parents) to the questioning of the religious leaders.  But for now, let us observe Jesus' work in the midst of this last, great day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  It is on this day that water was drawn from the pool of Siloam to commemorate the water flowing from the rock struck by Moses, and also as purification for the temple.  Jesus chooses this day to manifest these truths from the Old Testament through His own ministry as Incarnate Jesus.  It is yet one more way in which Christ came not to destroy, but to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 5:17); that is, the fullness of the promise of the God of the Old Testament Scriptures, the I AM (Exodus 3:14; John 8:58).  This sixth sign of the presence of the Kingdom (and the presence of the I AM) is a stupendous sign given of illumination, the sight given to a person who was born blind.  It is also a symbol of cleansing from the evil that permeates the world through no fault of our own, the "sins" into which we're born and the effects of which we inherit as children born into this world.  But more than that -- since Christ declared the blindness of this man is not the fault of any sin on the part of his parents or himself -- this healing is the occasion of revelation of the doctrine of Christ, the transformation and transfiguration promised through the Cross.  That is, it is a sign of the power of God not simply to separate good and evil, and to teach us to do good, but of the power of the ministry of this New Covenant in Christ to transform even what is "evil" for the salvation of the world.  If we but think for a moment about the Crucifixion itself, we can see the absolute and starkly startling idea that the horrors of Roman crucifixion, meted out to the most lowly among the criminals, could be transformed and transfigured in Christ to become a symbol of His saving power "for the life of the world" (see John 3:14-17, 6:51).  Christ, as manifestation and fulfillment of the promises of the Old Covenant, now does one better in this healing of the man blind from birth.  He takes the occasion of affliction, of evil, and uses is -- and proclaims it -- as an occasion for which the works of God should be revealed.  In this sense, an affliction or evil is transformed, transfigured through the healing power of Christ, into a manifestation of the glory of God.  Through his affliction, the sadness of his blindness from birth, this man becomes not only healed and saved in Christ, but an occasion for the world to know the glory of God and the ways that Christ has come to work in the world, not simply to battle against evil, but to transfigure its very effects among us.  He will transfigure death to Resurrection in the greatest healing power ever conceived and made manifest; that power of God not only rebukes death, but is capable of using even death to defeat death and to offer us eternal life.  This is a far greater power than the world has conceived or considered, and His power to transform and transfigure the evil in our own lives continue to work for us when we put our faith in Him and in His road for our lives.  In this perspective, even the occasions which cause us sorrow and give us loss can be transfigured into occasions for the glory of God.  They may not seem like occasions for rejoicing, such as the affliction of blindness on this man from birth.  But when we follow our faith, we may find, as countless others have done as well, a kind of rebirth into a life we didn't expect, in which there are precious things of value to be found despite our losses and disappointments and plans and desires for life.  An unfortunate illness may be turned into an occasion for heroism and love, of finding strengths or saving help from others we could not have expected, maybe even from ourselves in learning to care for another.  The poverty of one person may be turned into an occasion for charity and love on the part of another, extending themselves through faith in God's goodness and the light that Christ has brought for us.  One injustice may open our eyes to help others; when coupled and worked through the love of God this becomes a transfiguring love in us, and one that expands our capacity for charity, strength, and giving gifts to others.  Saints are born from such opportunities and such faith applied so that occasions of affliction become opportunities for the glory of God, that the works of God should be revealed in them.  St. Philothei of Athens gave her money and her love to women enslaved and put into harems, establishing monasteries where women could be trained for other work or sell their own goods; she ransomed and hid those who were former slaves, and was martyred by being beaten for doing so.  Maria Skoptsova, known as Mother Maria, or St. Maria of Paris, took in Jewish refugees during the Nazi Occupation as part of her ministry to the poor, for which she was eventually killed on Holy Saturday in Ravensbrook Concentration Camp.  One may be tempted to say that one doesn't need Christ for such works, but I would reply that to do so is to vastly underestimate our need for the power of love and faith, and the strength, resilience, and creativity found in that road of faith in Christ.   Moreover, true discernment is needed for such works in those circumstances, and the humility of our calling.  These are just two examples out of a world and a history of those acting of love for Christ, even among circumstances that are evil.   A world afflicted and permeated by evil needed a Savior who would not merely proclaim the good, but One who could transfigure and transform and work even through what is evil.  We needed a Savior who offers us His light so that we might follow Him in reflecting that light and doing the same works of faith.  We might not be able to effect miraculous healings, but our whole lives can be transformed and transfigured by His love, so that by His light we see where love can shine in a dark world, where tragedy can be occasion for the triumph of love.