“Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” John 9:3
The Lord does great things in us … as well as for us and through us. In one sentence, this could summarize today’s Gospel reading. As Jesus tells the people before healing the man, the healing which takes place is so that the mercy and love of God – better yet his greatness – can be revealed, or to put it another way, it’s to show how the grace of God works in each of us who invite and respond to his grace. Last week, in the homily, I mentioned how the interaction between Jesus and the woman at the well explored the mystery of his grace – that free, undeserved and supernatural gift of God’s own life and love which He chooses to bestow on us – that outpouring of God’s own life into our soul, and how He bestowed that grace through the Sacraments. Today’s Gospel continues to explore this mystery of grace, especially through the Sacraments, but more specifically, through the so-called sacraments of healing – Reconciliation and Anointing. Through these sacraments, God’s glory shines relieving us from the pain and anxiety that unsettles the soul. In receiving the sacraments we’re not only allowing his grace to heal us from the sin and death that falls upon the soul, but we’re responding to this grace, inviting the Lord, expressing our gratitude, and above all placing our faith the love and mercy which He bestows on us. To this end, along with the Eucharist – the sacrament that nourish us and gives us strength – Reconciliation and Anointing are repeated or received as often as necessary bestowing on us that sanctifying grace – that ongoing work of God in our lives – which we need. In this way, the Holy Spirit renews, transforms, and empowers us to live in righteousness and holiness, producing spiritual growth and the fruits of the Spirit such as love, joy, peace, and patience, as it did with this man in the Gospel, through the healing grace of Jesus Christ.
This week, the Church remembers the husband of the Blessed Mother and the earthly Father of Jesus Christ, Saint Joseph, a wonderful example of how grace works in a person’s life. He allowed himself to be transformed by God; therefore, he’s referred to as “just” and “righteous,” someone who shares somehow in God’s own holiness. To put it another way, he was completely open to all that God wanted to do for him and through him. He became holy by opening himself totally to God, by receiving with humility and gratitude the grace of God. May we not only recall then his actions but his example of how God works great things in us. Saint Joseph, pray for us!
In Christ
Fr Robert