9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. 17 So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”
18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19 and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” 20 His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” 22 (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.) 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”26 They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27 He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28 And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.”30 The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34 They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.” 38 He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” 40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
John 9:1–41 ESV – Bible Gateway
This Sunday we see the theme of Living Water, as in baptism, continued in this Gospel story. One thing to keep in mind regarding the readings in Lent and what the Church intends, “She is preparing the catechumens to receive that grace of illumination, the sight that they will receive in the washing of the water in the font of Baptism.”[1] “As is well known, today’s Gospel is an extended mystagogy on the sacrament of Baptism”[2]
In the Gospels we have several instances of Jesus healing the blind with specific individuals or as references to him healing the blind. John provides us with this unique instance of one story and the longest regarding this healing. In general, we find that one or more blind people approach Jesus crying out for healing or they are brought to him for healing. Here, the man born blind is first observed by Jesus and then the disciples. The disciples want to enter a theological discussion on who is culpable for the man’s blindness, whether the fault laid with this man or his parents. Jesus cuts this discussion to the quick moving from blame to show “that the works of God might be displayed in him.” The work Jesus is about to do, he includes us in that we “must work the works of him who sent me.” He proceeds directly to take dirt and his saliva to make mud and to anoint the man’s eyes to heal him.
I see this partly as a reminder for us when we see those who are suffering from material or spiritual evils, to look past causes and who to blame for their condition. To instead act and do what we can do through God’s grace given to us. The causes are not unimportant and there is time and place to reflect on them and to act to rectify them, but the individual is not to be treated as something abstract, but as a person in the image and likeness of God.
We have another instance of Jesus using his saliva to heal a blind man, such as the man at Bethsaida in Mark 8:22. In this story, this is a much deeper level in Jesus’ sacramental application of this miracle. It seems so odd to us he would mix dirt with his saliva to heal him.
Dr. John Bergsma’s opinion on one aspect of this is based on the Dead Sea Scrolls:
“where man is described as being “kneaded from dust … he is so much spit … mere knipped-off clay” (cf. 1 QS 11:21; 1QHa 20:35; 4Q264 1 9). I think this reflects an ancient Jewish understanding of the creation story in which God spat on the ground and formed Adam’s body from the resultant clay/mud.”[3]
Dr. Brant Pitre expands on this:
Well you wont’t be surprised to realize that it really lies in the Old Testament, it lies in the Jewish roots of Jesus’s action here. Because in first century Judaism—this is really interesting—there was a tradition going all the way back—the Dead Sea Scrolls refer to this—that when God made Adam from the dust of the ground he used spittle. That he used spit. Because if you try to make something from dust, you can’t do it. You can’t mold a statue of dust. You have to have some liquid in order to hold the dirt together. So the Jews had this tradition that when God made Adam, he made him from spit and clay. He made him from his own spit, and the Dead Sea Scrolls actually have a line that said that Adam, or man, was made from “spat saliva, molded clay.” So think about that for a second. If in Jewish tradition God makes Adam from spit and dust from the clay, what is Jesus doing here?[4]
Jesus is further revealing himself as not just a prophet granted to perform miracles.
Jesus is acting like God acted in the Old Testament. In other words, he is performing an act of a new creation. Just as Adam was given his body from the clay, so Jesus now gives the man born blind sight. He gives him, in a sense, new eyes from the clay and his own spittle. So this is like a divine action for Jesus to spit on the ground and make clay and give this man sight.[5]
Jesus instructs the man to “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” and John amplifies that Siloam means ‘sent.’ This Recalls the miracle of Elisha in 2 Kings 5:10–14 where Naaman the Syrian is instructed to “go and wash” in the Jordan River to cure his leprosy. “The editorial comment that Siloam means Sent suggests that the pool is a symbol of Jesus, the source of living water (4:10) and the One sent by his Father (9:4; 12:44). Its contents are symbolic of the Spirit, who is the living water poured out by Christ (7:38–39) and the One who is sent by the Father and the Son (14:26; 15:26).”[6]
The reference to Siloam also intones deeper waters (pun always intended) as to the significance, which John Bergsma brings out:
New creation themes are present elsewhere. After anointing his eyes, Jesus sends the man to the Pool of Siloam to wash. The pool of Siloam collected the waters of the Gihon, the spring that provided water for Jerusalem. It was named the Gihon after one of the rivers of Eden (Gen 2:13) because the Jews saw Jerusalem as a kind of new Eden. So, mystically, the waters of Siloam were Edenic or creational waters. The man is being made new.[7]
St. Ambrose reflects on the significance of this healing:
In one instant, we see the power of Jesus’ divinity and the strength of his holiness. As the divine light, he touched this man and enlightened him; as priest, by an action symbolizing baptism, he wrought in him his work of redemption. The only reason for Jesus mixing clay with the spittle and smearing it on the eyes of the man born blind was to remind you that he who restored the man to health by anointing his eyes with clay is the very one who fashioned the first man out of clay. And that this clay is our flesh that can receive the light of eternal life through the sacrament of baptism. You too should come to Siloam. Let Christ wash you and then you will see. Come and be baptized; it is time. Come quickly and you too will be able to say, “I was blind and now I see.”[8]
St. John goes on describing the reaction of those confronted with this miracle. Much of the reactions is as skepticism rooted in a bias against Jesus. A small part of this skepticism was whether this was the same man or whether he had actually been blind from birth—a miracle never previously observed in the Old Testament. Most of the skepticism was not formed from observation, but a rejection by the Pharisees that Jesus could be the Messiah. They are more concentrated on Jesus performing a miracle on the Sabbath, then that a miracle was performed. Among the Pharisees, there were different opinions, with some seeing this as a true sign, but unable to take the next step in its meaning. When presented with a truth that goes against our expectations, we dampen its importance because it goes against an acceptable position within our group identity. The blind man’s parents were afraid to be truthful when questioned by the Pharisees.
By shifting the focus back to their son, his parents put him in jeopardy in order to protect themselves. They act out of fear and self-interest. Throughout John 9, the formerly blind man is the only one who testifies in Jesus’ defense. By explaining the parents’ motivation, John sets up a contrast between the parents’ fearfulness and their son’s courage.[9]
There are many obvious intended parallels between the physical blindness of the man and the spiritual blindness of those who witnessed the effects of this miracle.
Dr. Peter Kreeft reflects in his commentary.
…the obvious point, of the story: that we are all born blind, that is, not in union with God, who is the source of all light, both physical and spiritual; and that we all need to be healed from this spiritual blindness; and that only Christ can heal us and restore us to the light, that is, to the truth, especially the truth about God, the amazing truth that God is love.[10]
…if you were really only blind and ignorant like this blind man, and if you knew you were blind and ignorant, if your minds were in the dark but your hearts were open to the light, then you would not be guilty of pride. Ignorance is not a sin; pride is. But because you insist that you already see, that you are supremely wise, you are fools. You refuse to admit that you might be wrong. Because your hearts are closed, therefore your minds are closed too, and therefore you are blind. That’s a very serious sin. You are deliberately closing your eyes to the truth in your pride and arrogance.[11]
One aspect I find most interesting is the reaction of the man born blind himself. He is not the one to approach Jesus. Jesus directly approaches him. We do not know his initial reaction to Jesus’ approach, but the story shows his shift of attitude from not knowing who Jesus is to worshiping him. We can imagine that throughout this man’s life that he had pursued healing, or that some came to him claiming they could perform a healing for him. The women who had bleeding for 12 years complained of the doctors who tried to heal her and this man might have experienced the same. Still, he receives the sacramental treatment Jesus gives him and is obedient in going to the pool of Siloam to wash. As he is later questioned and then questioned again he reflects on more regarding who Jesus is. The Pharisees’ very questions lead him to see their blindness and the inconsistencies of their argument to a dawning faith as to Jesus being a prophet. When Jesus than questions him “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”, he is willing to take on authority that Jesus is the Son of Man and what the implications mean and was moved to belief and worship.
Sources
Catholic Productions, Commentaries by Brant Pitre
The Word of the Lord: Reflections on the Sunday Mass Readings for Year A – John Bergsma
The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible꞉ The New Testament
The Gospel of John (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture)
Peter Kreeft, Food for the Soul: Reflections on the Mass Readings Cycle A
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash
- Catholic Productions, Brant Pitre, The Fourth Sunday of Lent (Year A) ↩
- The Word of the Lord: Reflections on the Sunday Mass Readings for Year A, John Bergsma, The Fourth Sunday of Lent ↩
- ibid ↩
- Catholic Productions, Brant Pitre, The Fourth Sunday of Lent (Year A) ↩
- ibid ↩
- Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament ↩
- The Word of the Lord: Reflections on the Sunday Mass Readings for Year A, John Bergsma, The Fourth Sunday of Lent ↩
- St. Ambrose, Letter 80, 1–5: PL 16,1326 ↩
- Francis Martin, William M. Wright IV, The Gospel of John (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture) ↩
- Peter Kreeft, Food for the Soul: Reflections on the Mass Readings Cycle A, The Fourth Sunday of Lent ↩
- ibid ↩
