Reading 1
Is 29:17-24
Thus says the Lord GOD:
But a very little while,
and Lebanon shall be changed into an orchard,
and the orchard be regarded as a forest!
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.
The lowly will ever find joy in the LORD,
and the poor rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
For the tyrant will be no more
and the arrogant will have gone;
All who are alert to do evil will be cut off,
those whose mere word condemns a man,
Who ensnare his defender at the gate,
and leave the just man with an empty claim.
Therefore thus says the LORD,
the God of the house of Jacob,
who redeemed Abraham:
Now Jacob shall have nothing to be ashamed of,
nor shall his face grow pale.
When his children see
the work of my hands in his midst,
They shall keep my name holy;
they shall reverence the Holy One of Jacob,
and be in awe of the God of Israel.
Those who err in spirit shall acquire understanding,
and those who find fault shall receive instruction.
Gospel
Mt 9:27-31
As Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying out,
“Son of David, have pity on us!”
When he entered the house,
the blind men approached him and Jesus said to them,
“Do you believe that I can do this?”
“Yes, Lord,” they said to him.
Then he touched their eyes and said,
“Let it be done for you according to your faith.”
And their eyes were opened.
Jesus warned them sternly,
“See that no one knows about this.”
But they went out and spread word of him through all that land.
Meditation: Matthew 9:27-31
See that no one knows about this. (Matthew 9:30)
Have you ever seen them? These modern-day vision chasers who travel from place to place, wherever there is a rumor that someone has had a vision of the Virgin Mary or heard their statue of St. Paul speaking to them. Sometimes there is even media coverage if a person produces something like a flower that bears a striking resemblance to the Shroud of Turin. This can be all very innocent, but it also runs the risk of missing the message embedded within the miracle.
It appears that things have not changed much since the time of Jesus. Then, as now, the world had its fair share of people seeking out the miraculous. That is, in fact, part of the reason why Jesus told the two men in today’s Gospel to keep quiet about their having been healed of blindness. He suspected that people would focus on the miracle itself and lose sight of his teachings and the real reason why he had come to be with them. To use the words of St. John, Jesus’ “hour” had not yet come, the time of his full revelation, and so he had to tread carefully until people had enough time to take it all in (John 2:4; 7:30).
How easy it can be to focus on Jesus the miracle worker! We all want solutions to our problems, after all, and the prospect of a miraculous “way out” is very appealing. It can be tempting to look at Jesus as just another popular guru promising a quick fix to all that besets us.
But that’s not who Jesus is. The outward wonders of his miracles are meant to be signs pointing us to the salvation he has planned for us. His main desire is to be king of our hearts, bringing us close to the Father’s love. The biggest miracle he could ever perform is to reconcile us with God and with each other—and he has already done that!
Today’s Gospel issues us a challenge: Who is Jesus? Is he my righteousness and my salvation? Or have I reduced him to be my personal advisor and problem solver?
“Lord Jesus, guide me as I release whatever keeps me from surrendering myself to you. Come and reign in my heart and my life!”
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