THIRTY-SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
A blind man is healed. Imagine his wonder at the world which now he sees and which before he had only heard, touched, smelt and tasted. But never seen.
Why was he given this gift of sight? He was given it for the glory of God, so that his outer sight would lead him to inner sight, to seeing with his heart, to faith.
For what use is outer sight if we, like the Pharisees, see but do not understand, see without seeing?
Those with only outer sight see Creation, the forests and the fields, the oceans and the mountains, the Sun, the Moon and the stars, but they fail to see God's handiwork through them, they do not see the Creator through and beyond Creation.
They see the grass that grows, but do not see the miracle of Creation, for no scientist in the world is capable of creating even a single blade of grass in a laboratory. They see a newborn baby, but do not see the miracle of life. They see their homes and their lives, but do not see how very fortunate they are, and so they continually complain, seeing only blackness and gloom.
They see all these things without seeing beyond them, for somewhere in their hearts they deny God, the Origin of all that is good. They see Creation, but do not see the Creator, like a blind man who does not see the Sun and therefore denies that it even exists. They take for granted their good fortune, never wondering from where it comes and thanking God for it. They remember God at best only when things go wrong.
But Christ heals not only blind men and women but through them whole societies that are blind, leading them from ordinary destinies to extraordinary destinies, leading them from the expected to the unexpected, leading then from the possible to the seemingly impossible. Christ heals also whole Empires of the blind.
Look at the Roman Empire, renowned for its brutality, cruelty and enslavement of millions. It too was converted to the humble faith of the Galilean.
Look at the Hellene Empire, renowned for its foolish and vain 'Greek' philosophies, and its confession of the Unknown God, it too fell to the wisdom of the carpenter's son.
Look at the English Empire, made up of primitive tribesmen, Angles, Saxons, Jutes, worshipping hills and trees, it too fell to the gentleness of the Saviour.
Look at the Russian Empire, renowned for its debauchery and heathenism, worshipping statues and rivers, it too fell to the mildness of Christ.
Other nationalities too were healed of their spiritual blindness through their 'local heroes', and discovered the Word of the Gospel and beheld the Vision of the Glory of God.
May
this day God grant us too inner sight.
Amen.
