JESUS, THE BLIND, AND CHRISTMAS

“He also restored sight to many who were blind.” –Luke 7:21

Mass Readings: December 14
First: Isaiah 45:6-8,18,21-25; Resp: Psalm 85:9-14;Gospel: Luke 7:18-23

Jesus said His mission was to proclaim “recovery of sight to the blind” (Lk 4:18). He healed the blind man at Bethsaida (Mk 8:25), blind Bartimaeus (Mk 10:52), and the man born blind (Jn 9:7). After raising the daughter of Jairus from the dead, Jesus restored sight to two blind men (Mt 9:30). On some other occasions, Jesus healed several blind people at one time (e.g. Lk 7:21). When Jesus listed His healings and miracles, He put healing the blind first on the list (see Lk 7:22; Mt 11:5). Jesus seems to be especially interested in healing the blind.

This Advent, Jesus is continuing (see Heb 13:8) to heal the physically blind. What a wonderful Christmas it will be for those healed! However, although almost all of us don’t need to be healed of physical blindness, nearly all of us do need to be healed of spiritual blindness. We have let ourselves be blinded by the false gods of the present age (2 Cor 4:4). We have even blinded ourselves (Is 29:9) by the darkness of sin (1 Jn 2:11). Therefore, when we receive the miracle of repentance, we receive the miracle-healing of spiritual blindness. Let’s repent, confess, and let Jesus remove the blinding effects of sin from our eyes. Then we can have a true Christmas.

PRAYER: Father, open my eyes to Your love, truth, and holiness. Open my eyes to the evil of sin and the hope of repentance.
PROMISE: “Turn to Me and be safe, all you ends of the earth, for I am God; there is no other!” –Is 45:22
PRAISE: St. John worked to enlighten his fellow monks to their need to reform. He endured brutality and intense persecution because he would not compromise the ideal that priests should be completely abandoned to Jesus.