2022 Bp Themi Sunday Sermon- The man born blind (John 9:1 – 31)

Today's gospel reading of the man born blind (John 9:1 – 31) raises a seminal question: can the sins of parents be visited upon the children, or, in other words, can a person be in sin for something they have never done? Certainly, the idea of inherited sin was not unknown in the old Testament. The book of Numbers (14:17 – 18) and Two Samuel (12:14) are but two examples of inherited sin. But the best known example is contained in the book of Genesis when the sin of Adam's disobedience was enough to cause humanity to be cast out from Paradise and thereby suffering death.

• Christ, in answering the question of whether it is the child or parent "who sinned?" declares that neither sinned but rather that this man's blindness happened so that the works of God might be manifested in him. Now, within this proposition lays a further mystery: was the evil of this man's blindness predestined by God so that God could manifest Himself?

• Here's the thing: evil is a mystery which mystery, the truth of which, we are not prepared to accept. The theodicies we apply to God are merely human constructs for us to get an understanding as to why good people suffer evil in the face of evil men who seem to prosper. We humans are an inquisitive lot always seeking to get to the bottom of something through our intellect. We are not prepared to let go of a conundrum – we will find an answer!. It is in our stubbornness that our hubris finds fertile ground. Thus by seeking God we become, paradoxically, alienated from God.

• So we cannot rely upon ourselves to arrive at sensible answer. Yet an answer there must be – and there is!. Whilst Christ is in the world he is the light of the world. While Christ is in our heart he enlightens the eye of our mind to see things clearly, and we will see things clearly if we trust in him. Therefore evil may swirl around us but it will not touch us for we have the armour of Christ. So the issue is not who sins but the issue rather is, in the face of sin, are you fortified in truth which is Christ or are you not. That is a question for each one of us to answer.