Lent IV

By the Reverend Martha Frances

Year A, Lent IV

2 March 2008

 

Text:  John 9: 1-41

Others: I Samuel 16: 1-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5: 8-14

 
[This morning we sing "I want to walk as a child of the light; I want to follow Jesus." Children of light follow Jesus, this song seems to say.] In the reading from Ephesians, the image of light is powerful [expanded]: "For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light." And at the end of that passage, "Sleeper, awake! Rise from the dead, & Christ will shine on you." Throughout scripture, & especially throughout the Gospel of John, the images of darkness & light, night & day dance like sunbeams through the stories. Jesus says, "We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

John expands this light versus darkness imagery in the story of Jesus' healing of the man born blind. Again this week, we hear one of John's long stories about the activities of Jesus, one in which the theological significance pops out like flecks of sunlight through the window blinds.

Jesus is walking along with his disciples who, seeing a blind man beside the road, ask who has sinned so this man was born blind. Today we would consider it primitive to blame congenital blindness upon the parents' sin yet we hear remnants of this accusation from folks who presume they or someone else is being punished for past behavior when they contract a disease. This attitude was rampant regarding the AIDS epidemic when it mostly afflicted homosexuals. It's interesting, now that AIDS affects the heterosexual population also, it is less often attributed to the victim's sin.

Jesus' disciples are definitely products of their culture: they focus on whose sin caused the blindness with little regard for the plight of the blind man himself. Jesus does not tolerate conversation about undeserved sin, dismissing the disciples' question out of hand: "Neither this man nor his parents sinned." He proceeds not just to talk about the blind man but to minister to him. Though the blind man never asks for healing, when Jesus sends him to wash in the pool of Siloam, he returns sighted.

Here, on a human level, we have evidence that what was dark is now light. The miracle is so amazing that the neighbors argue about whether this man was truly the one born blind. He assures them it is indeed he. Who is responsible for this miraculous cure? The man says the man called Jesus healed him. The townspeople might be sighted, but they seem awfully blind in this passage. However, the man who was healed has begun to believe.

As was their custom, they took the newly-sighted man to the synagogue so the rabbis could certify the miracle. We see similar blindness in the Pharisees: they get all wrapped up in Jesus' Sabbath healing. How can this Jesus not be a sinner since he broke the Sabbath law? That the blind man can now see is inconsequential to them. Sabbath rules were broken. Shame on Jesus! The religious leaders now try to trap the healed man. He assures them Jesus is a prophet. This formerly blind man, gaining sight & growing in faith, now sees Jesus as prophet.

Since the religious leaders aren't getting anywhere with the healed man, they interrogate his parents who show not one ounce of courage. This is their son who was born blind, but they claim ignorance how he has gained sight. They might be thrown out of the synagogue, & their position as good Jewish people is more important than their son's having gained his sight. "He is of age; ask him!" they reply. Passing the buck is not only pretty cowardly in itself, but in so doing, they put their son back on the hot seat.

Were we to see this drama played out, we would probably be snickering by now because the leaders return to the healed man & repeat their interrogation: "Identify the man," they demand. "Give glory to God;" their equivalent to "Swear on a stack of Bibles." Now we find the leaders not only blind; the healed man indicates they are also deaf. He reminds them he has already told them what he knows but they didn't listen. He boldly questions them, "You want to be his disciples, too? Otherwise you wouldn't be so persistent."

They can't tolerate his honesty & what they consider arrogance. "Who do you think you are, smarty pants," they say in essence. "We're the teachers, not you!" The newly-sighted man is driven out of the temple, separated from the community, ostracized & shunned. At this point, Jesus re-enters the story, & when he reveals himself to the sighted man as Son of Man, the man then responds, "Lord, I believe!"

Throughout the telling of this story, we see the difference between physical & spiritual blindness as we explore the freedom sight brings. First, the formerly-blind man becomes aware of the healing powers of Jesus & then sees Jesus is of God. Despite uncomfortable—perhaps dangerous—consequences, he must affirm the miracle which Jesus has done. This man models progressive discipleship for us. The passage ends, "And he worshipped him." He knows Jesus is divine, else he wouldn't have worshipped him.

This gospel passage has long enlightened those preparing for baptism during Lent. In the early Church, candidates for baptism studied up to 3 years before their baptism at the Great Vigil of Easter. We plan to have baptisms this year at our Easter Vigil, so if you are interested for yourself or a child, please see me immediately. This story exhibits the process of disciple-making usual in the early Church. The healed man, & countless Christians after him, began spiritual journeys with a glimmer of the light of belief &, through studying what it means to be Christian & living 3 years in Christian community, they were continually bathed in the Christ-light, the light of the world.

Baptism begins the process. When we celebrate a baptism or recite the Baptismal Covenant, we reaffirm our own enlightening, our journey toward walking fully in the light. Before our baptism, we were certainly in the dark, & sometimes we have slipped into the shadows since that time. But Jesus invites us to take on the light of Christ & display our lamp on a stand so it can enlighten others. Today's Ephesian passage tells us, "Try to find what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." Our weeks of Lent prior to Easter are set apart for examining how we can live more fully into our baptismal vows. Beginning Wednesday after Easter, we will meet after the Eucharist about 7:15 in a Discovery Class to explore becoming or being an Episcopalian. All interested in confirmation or in growing as a maturing Christian are encouraged to come weekly through April until the Bishop comes in late May for Confirmation.

Although Jesus doesn't dwell upon the question of sin in this passage, we get some hints of what Jesus counts as sin & what isn't in St. John's passage. Jesus discounts any connection between physical blindness & sin, & John uses sin in the singular, not sins. Why? In this Gospel, Sin is defined not by illness nor by violation of the law but rather by one's resistance to Jesus. Sin is gauged not by what actions a person does or doesn't take but by one's relationship to Jesus, or more precisely, by whether one believes that God is present in Jesus. A person's individual action is examined in terms of whether that action opens one to receive the light of Christ or whether that action blocks out the light.

Of course, when we live in Christian community, our actions do not affect ourselves alone but the whole of that community. Our ability to be a community of brothers & sisters with one another means we grow in trust with each other. Four of us from this community spent this last week in Los Angeles further honing our skills in offering communities opportunities to deepen trust with one another. Hope has the opportunity to grow as a model of multi-cultural community & sensitivity to further breaking down barriers which Jesus leveled in his own day. Ask Melanie Fahey, Danita & Cornelius Perry, or me how you can take part in this exciting opportunity. Our growing as an ever-welcoming community—not only in hospitality but also in discerning more fully Christ's call to us to become more truly Christlike is extraordinary. Let's covenant to live into the light of inclusion as we have stated in our mission statement.

We're all invited to join the man born blind to live into our baptismal vows by letting Christ's light illumine us more & more, making us into disciples who, strengthened by the light of the Holy Spirit, go forth to shine our lights to all the world. We are not on this journey alone. We gather with brothers & sisters in the community of the Holy Communion table to eat & drink of heavenly food so we can let our lights so shine before others that they may see God. May our eyesight be bright that we may see God in all our days, & that others might see Christ in us.