“His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’” – John 9:2
The disciples’ question in today’s Gospel lesson shows the human need to make sense of things. Even these pre-pre-pre-Enlightenment disciples had a need for explanation. Even they wanted to set up cause and effect relationships to make sense of things. Surely, those who follow God’s will are blessed, and those who don’t are cursed. Those who follow God’s will are healthy, and those who don’t are ill.
So, if this man is blind, it has to be SOMEONE’S fault. Where’s the blame? Whose sin can we point the finger at as the explanation for this man’s blindness? The disciples remind me of Jerry Falwell in the aftermath of 9/11, who chose to blame the sins of a multitude of “evildoers”, including homosexuals, as the cause of that day’s horrific events.
But today, I encourage you to think a little differently about the destruction and wrath that surrounds us. Do not blame victims because “they asked for it.” They most certainly did not. And don’t blame yourself if you are a victim. “It’s not your fault,” Robin Williams’ character says to Will in Good Will Hunting, repeating that line over and over again until Will finally gets it.
“Whose fault is it?” is the question of the disciples, and the prevailing question in most bad moments of life. But Jesus says not to worry about who is at fault. Rather, we should worry about how God reveals Godself to us within those bad moments. How, in those dark alleys of life, is “the work of God displayed”?
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