A Reflection for Friday of the First Week of Advent
Find today’s readings here.
On that day the deaf shall hear
the words of a book;
And out of gloom and darkness,
the eyes of the blind shall see. (Is 29:18)
Both the first reading and Gospel today have segments focused on the healing of the blind as promised by God.
In the first reading, we learn from the prophet Isaiah of the end goal of God’s plan, which is one of justice triumphing over injustice. The deaf and blind are able to absorb fully the words of God and his promises against any obstacle.
In the Gospel, we have a brief story of Jesus restoring sight to two blind men based on the power of their faith before the two share the story of this miracle “through all that land,” though against Jesus’ explicit ask.
Jesus healing the blind through faith in God is a widely known miracle, even outside Christian circles. But with how Isaiah presents the healing of the blind in the first reading, combined with the threat Jesus poses to false leaders following today’s Gospel, there is a more powerful message to be taken than just the literal healing of the blind.
There is a more powerful message to be taken from today's readings than just the literal healing of the blind.
Today’s readings are an instruction against tyranny in favor of the freedom of information.
This year, in both Russia and more recently China, we are seeing protesters getting arrested for holding blank sheets of paper as protest signs. A tyranny’s constructed darkness has created dystopian scenarios where we all know what those who are suffering want to say, even as many remain blind and cannot see those words.
With these recent news events, it is important to remember that what God promises in conjunction with the healing of the blind is an end to tyranny, that tyrants are still just men like the rest of us with “an empty claim” to power.
The fruitfulness promised by God in today’s readings can only be possible from those of us who can see, those of us with faith. We who live in a democracy like the United States that promises freedom of worship and allows for the freedom of information have a faithful responsibility to continue healing the blind.
Realizing the sight of the blind means praying for and putting forth more sacrifices for those giving their all to fight against the darkness and gloom. It means removing tyrants by any means necessary from their haughty, false thrones in favor of democratic leaders that can represent, not rule over, their fellow man. And it means stomping out against any attempts at home to allow would-be tyrants from ratcheting back protections for liberty in the name of ideology.
The healing of the blind is not only a miracle; it is an assignment.
