Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Fourth Sunday in Lent

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.… They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”… They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?” He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.” Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him. And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.” (John 9:1–7, 13–17, 34–39)

Now, on departing from the Temple, He went expressly to perform this miracle, as is clear from the fact that it was He who saw the blind man, not the latter who came to Him. So intently did He look at him that His disciples also noticed the man. Because of this, at least, they began to question Him. For, when they observed Him intently looking at the man, they formulated a question and asked: ‘Who has sinned, this man or his parents?’ The question was a blundering one, for how could he have sinned before he was born? And how could he have been punished, if his parents had committed the sin? What, then, did Christ reply? ‘Neither has this man sinned, nor his parents.’ Now, he said this, not to absolve them of having committed sins (for He did not make the unqualified statement: ‘Neither has this man sinned, nor his parents,’ but added by implication: ‘that he should be born blind’), but ‘that the Son of God should be glorified in him.’ He meant that this man had sinned, of course, as also had his parents, but his disability did not result from that.…

But notice that the judgment of the blind man was completely submissive. For he did not say: ‘If it is wholly the clay, or the spittle, which is restoring my eyes, why do I have to go to Siloam? And if I need Siloam, why do I need the clay? Why did He spread it on my eyes? Why did He bid me wash?’ However, he did not voice any of these thoughts, but occupied himself with one thing only, namely, to give complete obedience to the One who was giving him orders and nothing that happened gave him any offense at all.

Those who endure some terrible suffering and are insulted for the sake of truth and the confession of Christ are the ones particularly held in honor by Him. For, just as the man who loses his wealth for His sake is the one who finds it before all others, and the man who hates his life is the one who especially loves it, so also the man who suffers insult is held in honor most of all. And this also happened in the case of the blind man. Therefore, the Jews turned him out of the Temple, and the Lord of the Temple found him. He was rid of the disease-ridden assembly and attained to the saving Fountain. He was dishonored by those who dishonored Christ and was honored by the Lord of the Angels. Such are the rewards of truth.…

Moreover, notice how the Evangelist told of His solicitude. For when Christ said: ‘Do you believe in the Son of God?’ he answered: ‘Who is He, Lord?’ Not yet, to be sure, did he know Him, though he had been cured by Him. He was blind before coming to his Benefactor, and after the cure, he was maltreated by those dogs. Therefore, like some judge of the games, He welcomed him as an athlete who had been through many hardships and had been crowned. Yet, what did He say? ‘Do you believe in the Son of God?’ What is this? After such refutation of the Jews, after such words as his, does He ask whether he believes? He did so, not out of ignorance, but in the desire to make Himself known and to show how much He esteemed the man’s faith. He meant: ‘So many people have insulted Me, but I make no account of them. I am concerned about one thing only: namely, that you believe in Me. For, one man who does the will of God is better than thousands who transgress it.…

‘Do you believe in the Son of God?’ He was asking the question of him, as it might be asked by one who had been present and had heard his words and first He awakened in the man the desire for Himself. He did not say at once: ‘Believe in Me,’ but addressed him in the form of a question. What, then, did the other reply? ‘Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in him?’ These were the words of a loving soul that was earnestly seeking Him. He did not recognize Him whose cause he had so valiantly espoused, in order that you might learn his honesty. For, actually, he had not seen Christ before this moment. He said to him: ‘You have both seen Him, and He it is who speaks with you.’ He did not say: ‘I am He,’ but was as yet restrained and ambiguous in what He said. The words, ‘You have both seen Him,’ were still not clear; therefore, He added more explicitly: ‘He it is who speaks with you.’ He replied: ‘I believe, Lord,’ and at once ‘he worshiped Him.’

John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Gospel of John 56, 57, 58