Have you ever had someone look right at you and still not see you?
The neighbours around the previously blind man stare and start debating whether he is the same person. Healing has changed him, and that makes other people uncomfortable.
Then come the Pharisees. According to
them, the problem is not that the man can see. The problem is that it happened on the Sabbath. How can the healing be from God if it was performed on the Sabbath, which is a sin?
John is showing us a hard truth: sometimes religion becomes a means of being right rather than of meeting God. Rules can become a torch we shine at other people, rather than a lamp that helps us walk.
Jesus calls himself “light.” But light does more than make things bright. Light exposes. Light reveals. Light interrupts the shadows we have learned to live with.
In the Ignatian Examen, we ask for light to see our day clearly. That can be a challenging prayer because when light comes, it can reveal fears and prejudices that our doctrines and certainties have been covering.
Today’s invitation is gentle but brave: let the light tell the truth, not to shame you, but to free you.
Where do you feel defensive when God does something you did not expect? What “rule” or assumption might God be inviting you to hold more lightly so that love can have room to breathe?
