Gospel:  John 9:1-41

The Gift of True Sight

Have you ever played a game with a blindfold? Or, have you ever been on a trust walk, where you are blindfolded and led by another person?

Playing games with a blindfold helps us appreciate the gift of sight. Sight is a double blessing in a culture whose media manipulates visual contents, its patterns, and its timing. A quickly edited, fast moving commercial on television proves the point; your eyes quickly "read" the message.

Through the cure of a person born blind, John's gospel presents sight in a metaphorical sense. Sometimes a person can look, but not see. Here, the blind man received not only the ability to use his eyes but the gift to see the truth.

Popular Translation

1 As Jesus walked by, he saw a beggar who was born blind. 2 His disciples asked him, "Teacher, whose sin is to blame for this man's blindness, his or his parent's?"

3 "Neither," Jesus replied. "He's blind so that he might show everyone how God works in him. 4 We must do the work of the One who sent me as long as it's daytime. Nighttime will soon be here then no one will be able to work. 5 While I am here in the world, I am the light of the world."

6 Jesus spat on the ground, mixed the spit and dirt together to make mud, and rubbed the mud into the man's eyes. 7 "Go wash your eyes in the Siloam Pool," Jesus told him. The man left and washed the mud off. Now he could see!

8 Many people used to walk by the man as he begged. These people and the man's neighbors wondered, "Isn't this the man who used to sit and beg?"

9 At this, there was an argument. "Yes, he's the man," some said. But others disagreed: "He just looks like the man."

Finally, the man answered, "I'm the beggar!"

10 "But, how did you receive your sight?" the people demanded.

11 "The man called Jesus made mud and smeared it on my eyes. Then he told me to go wash them in the Siloam Pool. So, I went and washed them. Now I can see."

12 "Well, where is Jesus now?"

"I don't know."

13 Then, they brought the beggar to religious leaders called Pharisees. 14-16 When the leaders found out Jesus made mud and healed the man on the Sabbath, they questioned him. "How did you get your sight back?" the Pharisees demanded.

"This man came by and put mud on my eyes. I washed it off," the beggar replied. "Now I can see."

"Well, God commanded us not to do any work on the Sabbath. This man broke God's Law when he cured you," some of the Pharisees stated. "So, this man cannot come from God!" But, other leaders disagreed. "But how can a man who breaks God's Law do such things?" they said. So, an argument broke out among the Pharisees. 17 In the end, they asked the beggar, "What's your opinion of the man who healed you?"

"He's a prophet!" the man replied.

18 Now the religious leaders wouldn't believe he was born blind then could see. So they brought in the man's parents 19 for questioning. "Is this the man you claim was born blind? So, how can he now see?"

20 "We know this is our son and he was born blind," his parents said. "But we don't know who gave him his sight or how the man did it. 21 Question our son! He's an adult. He can speak for himself."

22 The man's parents spoke this way because they were afraid of the leaders. The leaders had already agreed to kick anyone who said Jesus was the Christ out of their meeting place. 23 This was why the parents said, "He's an adult. Question him!"

24 They called the man a second time and demanded, "Tell the truth before God. We know this Jesus is a sinner!"

25 "I don't know whether he is a sinner or not," the man replied. "I do know one thing. I was blind. Now I can see."

26 "What did he do to you? How did he heal you?"

27 "I already told you but refused to listen. Why do you want to hear my report again? You don't want to become his followers, do you?"

28 The leaders insulted the man born blind, "You are one of his disciples, not us. We are disciples of Moses. 29 We know God spoke through Moses. But we don't even know where this man came from."

30 "That's amazing!" the man shot back. "You don't know where he came from. But he was the one who gave me sight. 31 We know God doesn't listen to sinners. He does hear the pious man who does God's will. 32 No one from the beginning of time until now has ever heard of someone giving sight to a person born blind. 33 If Jesus wasn't from God, he couldn't do anything."

34 At this, the Pharisees got angry. "You've been evil ever since you were born! How dare you try to tell us what to think!" they shouted at the man. Then, they threw him out.

35 Jesus heard what happened to the beggar. When Jesus found the man, he asked him, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

36 "Point him out, so I can believe in him," the beggar responded.

37 "You've already seen him," Jesus said. "That person is talking to you right now."

38 "I trust you, Lord!" the man said. Then, he bowed and worshiped Jesus.

This passage can be divided into three parts:

A) the declared action of Jesus (9:1-7)

B) a set of parallel dialogues between the man and others (9:8-24)

C) the result of the healing as faith (9:35-41)

Note sections A and C mirror each other. 9:1-5 and 9:39-41 addressed faith as sight. 9:6-7 and 9:39-41 addressed the different meanings of sight.

Also note section B has internal parallels. 9:8-12 and 9:18-23 had dialogues with outsiders (neighbors and parents). 9:13-17 and 9:24-34 had dialogues between the healed man and the religious leadership.

A: The Light and the Healing (9:1-7)

Literal Translation

1 Passing by, HE saw a man blind from birth. 2 HIS disciples asked HIM, saying, "RABBI, who sinned, the (man) or his parents, so (he) was born blind?" 3 JESUS answered, "Neither this (man) sinned nor his parents but (it happened) so that the work of God might be revealed in him. 4 We must work the works of the (One) sending ME as long as (it) is day. Night is approaching when no one is able to work. 5 While (I) am in the world, I AM the light of the world."

6 Having said this, (HE) spat on the ground, made mud out of the spit (and dirt), and placed his mud on the (blind man's) eyes. 7 (HE) said to him, "Go wash in the Pool of Siloam," which translated "Being Sent." Then, (the blind man) went, washed, and came to see.

9:2 "RABBI, who sinned, the (man) or his parents, so (he) was born blind?" Ancient peoples lived in a culture that ascribed natural phenomena with the activity of spirits. They credited good fortune with benevolent spirits. They blamed calamities of sickness and death on evil spirits. Personal immorality invited demons into the lives of people. Hence, the question of cause and effect. Why was the man born blind? It had to be either his personal sin or an inherited condition from the sins of his parents.

9:3-4 Jesus shifted the notion of cause and effect from sin to divine revelation. He described the latter as "the work of the One who sent me." The term "work" is "ergon" in Greek, the source of the word "energy." St. Paul constructed much of his theology around the term "work." The edicts of the Law demanded certain behaviors to define one as a faithful Jew; these were "works" (Romans 3:28 4:6). But the evangelist implicitly flipped the idea of covenant duty. He described "works" in terms of divine initiative. God did "works" through Jesus. He was the One who honored the Sabbath (see 9:14) and thus revealed what sort of God to be worshiped.

9:4-5 "While (I) am in the world, I AM the light of the world." John returned to a favorite theme: light vs. darkness. While the evangelist does use this comparison to describe moral action (good vs. evil), in this case he equated light with divine presence. Not only did Jesus "work" in the "light," he was the "light of the world." As the source of the light, he was God.

9:7 "came to see" is literally "came to seeing."

In this section, Jesus addressed light as revelation. Healing a man born blind was not a matter of karma (sinful action caused an evil result) but was a matter of God's glory. Through his ministry, Jesus made the activity of God manifest. Giving this blind man sight was a case in point; he allowed the man to see light and what happens in the light. The man would see experience day and night directly and not through the words of others.

This healing occurred during the festival of Sukkot (also called the "Festival of Booths"). The holy days celebrated life in the desert during the Exodus. The notion of light was an integral theme of the celebration. Israelites depended upon the divine light to show them the way in the desert (Exodus 3:2, 13:21, 24:17; see Psalm 27:1). According to the Mishnah (third to fourth century CE Jewish commentary), an elaborate ceremony occurred on the first night of Sukkot at the Temple. Four large lamp stands were lit and fed with copious amounts of olive oil. The light from the stands was so bright, it illuminated most of Jerusalem.

This may have been the background for Jesus's comment, "I AM the light of the world." He was the divine light that illuminated the path of faith. While he was present, the faithful could see the way. But, when he was gone, spiritual darkness would return.

To make his point, Jesus cured the man with mud and a washing. (The blind man washed in the Pool of Siloam or the "sent" pool. As part of an aqueduct system built over the centuries for Jerusalem, this pool was the "receiving tank" for the water. Hence, its name; the aqueduct "sent" water to the pool.)

B: Dialogues Between the Man and Others (9:8-34)

8 So, (his) neighbors and those (used to) seeing him (in his previous state), that he was a beggar, said, "Is this (man) not the (one) sitting and begging?" 9 Some said, "This is (the man)" Others said, "No. But he is like (the blind beggar)." That (man) said, "I am (he)."

10 Then (they) said to him, "How were your eyes opened?" 11 That (man) answered, "The MAN, the (ONE) being called JESUS, made mud and smeared (it) on my eyes and said to me ‘Go to the Siloam (Pool) and wash.' So, going and washing, I (could) see." 12 They said to him, "Where is THAT (MAN)?" He said, "I do not know."

9:8 "(in his previous state)" is literally a noun that is the object of "seeing." The noun acts as an adverb meaning "previously."

9:9 "(the blind beggar)" is the pronoun "him." The reference to the blind man was added for clarification.

The man returned to his neighborhood when another controversy erupted. The blind man's neighbors forced him to defend his cure. [9:8-9] According to 9:8, the man's neighbors saw the man beg on a daily basis. Most of the neighbors knew the man from birth, since culture and livelihood pressured people to maintain a residence from one generation to the next. And, culture in the time of Jesus was open; everyone made a point to know their neighbor's business. Why, then, did the blind man need to defend his cure?

In such a stable, static, open society, people used deception, secrecy, and lying to protect a sense of reputation. Such devices, however, led to a sense of disbelief. If one boasted to inflate a reputation, the response might be a cynical challenge. When the man demonstrated his cure (and his freedom from begging) to his neighbors, he was met with incredulity by some.

Ancient cultures also detested change. Anything new was treated with suspicion. So, when the man born blind received his sight, certainly he would become a point of interest for some, disbelief for others. Between these two viewpoints, a controversy erupted. Was this the man or not? What happened to him? Who did this to him? The questions piled up and the arguments grew louder. So, everyone decided to have the local leaders adjudicate the case.

This dialogue foreshadowed the questioning of the man's parents in 9:18-23.

13 They led him, the (man) once blind, to the Pharisees. 14 Now, (it) was the Sabbath, on which day Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 Then, (once) again, the Pharisees asked him how he saw. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, I washed (the mud off), and I saw." 16 So, some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, because he does not keep the Sabbath." [But] others said, "How is a sinful man able to do such signs?" There was a dispute among them. 17 So, they said to the blind man again, "What do you say about HIM because he opened your eyes?" He said, "HE is a prophet."

9:15 "(once) again" This was the second time the man answered the question "What happened to you?" This was not the second time the Pharisees posed the question to the blind man.

9:16 "dispute" is literally "schism."

Because of the controversy, the neighbors brought the cured man before the Pharisees for a judgment. [9:14] They were to sit in judgment over one question: Was the beggar a fraud? However, many asked another question: Was the Healer a sinner? By answering this second question, they could answer the first question.

A group within the Pharisees began their attack with a point of the Law. [9:16] Since Jesus healed on the Sabbath, this group charged, he violated the Third Commandment. As a violator, he sinned. (As a sinner, he stood outside the Jewish community. So, Jesus and his disciple would have to be excommunicated; see 9:22 not covered in this study). The cured man could plainly see his reputation hinged on that of Jesus, so the cured man had no choice but to associate Jesus with God. Hence, he declared Jesus was a prophet. [9:17]

A dialogue between the healed man and the religious leaders foreshadowed another in 9:24-34.

18 Now the Jewish (leaders) did not believe (this) about him that (he) was blind and (then he) saw until (they) finally called the parents of the (man) gaining sight. 19 (They) asked them, saying,"Is this (man) your son, the (one) you say that (he) had been born blind? Now, how can (he) see?" 20 Then, his parents answered and said, "We know that that (man) is our son that he was born blind. 21 How (he) now sees (we) do not know nor who opened his eyes (we) do not know. Interrogate him, (he) has (attained) maturity; he will speak for himself." 22 His parents said these things for they feared the Jewish (leaders). Indeed, the Jewish (leaders) had already agreed that whoever acknowledged HIM as (the) CHRIST should be excommunicated (from the synagogue). 23 Because of this, his parents said, "(He) has (attained) maturity. Interrogate (him)."

The questioning of the man's parents pointed to several issues in ancient culture. First, group identity so defined one's place and self image, it sometimes trumped familial relationships. Outside of one's nation, tribe or clan, an individual had no personal worth. This led to the second issue, fear of excommunication. The identity of the parents as pious Jews and as respectable members of their community was more important than their relationship with their son. Fear of losing their social status caused them, in the end, to disown their offspring. The evangelist not only made this second issue explicit, he heightened it in a chiasmus when he mentioned the parent's response twice [9:21, 23]. Of course, the religious leaders were aware of that fear and used it as a wedge in the hope the healed man would reject Jesus [9:22].

24 Then (they) called the man who was (once blind) a second (time) and said to him, "Give glory to God! We know this man is a sinner." 25 That (man) answered, ‘If (HE) is a sinner (I) do not know. One (thing) I do know that, (once) being blind, now I see." 26 Then, (they) said to him, "What did (HE) do to you? How did (HE) open your eyes?" 27 (He) answered them, "(I) already told you and (you) did not listen. Why do (you) want to hear (it) again? Do you not want to become his disciples?" 28 (They) reviled him and said, "You are a disciple of THAT (MAN). We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to Moses but (we) do not know where THIS (MAN) is (from)." 30 The man answered and said to them, "For in this (matter, it) is remarkable that you do not know where (HE) is (from) and, (yet, HE) opened my eyes. 31 (We) know that God does not listen to sinners but if someone (is) reverent and does his will, (God) listens to this (man). 32 Not (even) from the beginning (of creation) has (anyone) heard that someone opened the eyes of (one) being born blind. 33 If HE were not from God, HE would not be able to do anything." 34 They answered and said to him, "You were born completely in sin and you teach us?" They threw him outside (the community).

9:24 "Give glory to God" This phrase bound the man to an oath of truthfulness not unlike modern witnesses receive to testify in a legal court.

9:34 "They threw him outside (the community)" meant excommunication. The blind man stood outside the local Jewish community.

The leaders bound the man to tell the truth yet they presupposed the guilt of Jesus ("we know this man is a sinner") [9:24]. The man obliged with the facts. Yet, the leaders wanted to wear him down by recounting the incident in hope the man would change his story. He outwitted the leaders with the question: do you want to know more about Jesus so you can become his disciples? They objected and claimed to be disciples of Moses, keepers of the tradition. They didn't know where Jesus came from [9:29].

Here, we must pause and consider the question of Jesus's origin. This is one of the overarching themes in John's gospel from the pre-existence of the Logos (1:1-18) to the encounter with Nicodemus (3:13, 16) to discussion with the Baptist (3:31-36) to the Bread of Life discourse (6:38-40, 46, 57-58). The religious leaders did not recognize his origin (7:28-29, 8:14-19, 42). Thus, the question of origin (and ultimate destination) became a clear fault line between the leaders and the disciples and, later, between Pharisaical Judaism and the Johannine community. For Christians, Jesus came from God and returned to God.

The man responded to the leaders' incredulity. No one had ever given sight to a man born blind. No sinner could perform this feat for such power to heal came from God. So Jesus came from God. Otherwise, he would be helpless.

"...you were born in sin..." (that is, born with a blindness caused by sin). The Pharisees implicitly equated the man's blindness to his own immorality or that of his parents. (In 9:2-3, Jesus rejected this notion.) In doing so, they implicitly acknowledged Jesus' power to cure the blind man and to forgive sin. For, the logic goes, if one truly cured the illness (blindness), then he must have eliminated the cause of the illness (sin).

C: Faith and Blindness

35 JESUS heard that they threw him outside and, finding him, said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36 That (man) answered and said, "Who is he, Sir, that I might believe in him?" 37 JESUS said to him, "You have seen him. And the (one) speaking with you is that (man)." 38 He said, "I believe, Lord!" And he worshiped HIM.

9:36, 38 In 9:36, "Sir" is literally "Lord." The title could be polite address or one of faith. In the context of the dialogue, polite address is assumed in 9:36. Faith context is assumed in 9:38

Since the Pharisees excommunicated him, the man now stood alone. [9:34b] Without membership in the synagogue, he was no longer a Jew; he would be shunned by his friends and neighbors alike. For his defense of Jesus, all he had left was Jesus. So Jesus sought him out and asked him the question of faith: "Do you believe in the Son of Man (i.e., Messiah)?" The man answered with a question: "Who is he, Lord, so I might trust...him." Jesus then seemed to say: "Open your eyes. The Messiah is talking to you now." With this revelation, the man professed his trust in Jesus and worshiped him. [9:35-38]

39 JESUS said, "For judgment, I have come into the world so that (those) not seeing might see and (those) seeing might become blind." 40 (Some) among the Pharisees (who were) with HIM heard this and said to HIM, "(We) are not blind, are we?" 41 JESUS said to them, "If (you) were blind, (you) would not have sin but, now (you) say that (you) see, your sin remains."

After the profession of faith by the man, Jesus declared his ministry in terms of sight. Here, he mixed literal and metaphorical meanings of sight-blindness and framed both as judgment. He would cure the physically blind but metaphorically "blind" those who could see God's activity but refused to accept the divine presence [9:39].

At this point, the Pharisees suddenly appeared on stage and questioned his statement. "You don't mean us, Jesus?" they seemed to say [9:40].

While Jesus rejected personal or parental sin as a cause of physical blindness (9:3), he definitely equated sin with metaphorical blindness. To deny God's activity in Jesus was the sin of pride. It was blindness [9:41].

Catechism Themes: The Characteristics of Faith (CCC 153-165)

When Jesus cured the blind man, he gave him a choice to change, to chance to trust in God. Jesus invited the man to faith.

Faith is a gift of God, a supernatural virtue infused by him. (CCC 153). We cannot obtain faith by our own efforts or merit. A faith in God comes from God; he initiates the faith relationship and every step in that relationship.

But faith always remains a choice we make. When we choose to trust in God and believe in what he reveals to us, we exercise our freedom. Our minds and wills freely cooperate with God's grace. Faith is not and can never be an act coerced by God or others.

Faith and understanding are compatible because:

1) Faith is certain. We have complete trust God will help us through times of doubt.

2) Faith seeks understanding. In faith, we seek reasonable answers to life's problems and the troubles of the world. We also seek a deeper awareness of God acting in the world.

3) Faith and science are compatible. Since science and revelation have their source in the same God, scientific study carried out in an ethical manner cannot conflict with faith. Indeed, study can cause the same awe and humility in the scientist as reflection on creation causes in the believer.

It is impossible to have a relationship with God without faith. In the same vein, we cannot grow closer to God without perseverance; just as in human relationships, trust can never be lax. With perseverance, we have hope, for we are supported by others and we see the goal of faith. We can look to the witness of others for inspiration in times of trial. And, as we are drawn closer by God, we can see the goal of faith, to see God "face to face" "as he truly is" (CCC 163).

Have you seen God change someone for the better? What sort of changes came about? How was faith involved?

John's gospel presents us with a challenge. Are we willing to be changed for the sake of faith? Are we willing to see things as they are, not as we wish them to be?

The man born blind gained true sight, simply because he was willing to be changed. Like the man born blind, we, too, must have open eyes and an open heart, a willingness to let God change us.

How has God changed you in the past? What sort of change is God calling you to now?