In today’s Gospel reading, we hear how Jesus restored the sight of the man born blind. Just as David was anointed with oil and received the spirit of the Lord in our first reading (1 Samuel 16:13), Jesus anointed the blind man with clay, a combination of the earth and Jesus’s spit: “…he spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and smeared the clay on his eyes…(John 9:6).
Recall that God formed Adam from the dust of the earth—adama in Hebrew—and the divine breath of God (Genesis 2:7). Jesus anointed the blind man and gave him the gift of the Holy Spirit. He restored him to the dignity of being a beloved son of the Father. God is our maker, and we belong to Him: “Yet, Lord, you are our father; we are the clay and you our potter: we are all the work of your hand” (Isaiah 64:7).
This story is reminiscent of the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. In this sacrament, the priest prays over and anoints the sick person, touching the person to confer God’s healing. Sometimes the person is healed bodily, but even if no outward sign occurs “the primary effect of the Sacrament is a spiritual healing by which the sick person receives the Holy Spirit’s gift of peace and courage” (USCCB).
Jesus anoints the blind man with clay and sends him to wash. In his obedience, he is healed, both in body and spirit. In the sacrament, the anointed are washed with God’s love and given strength to walk with the Lord through their suffering, or as in today’s Psalm, “through the valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23:4). We believe that Jesus has conquered sin and death, and He will save us. How can we allow Christ to be our divine physician and heal us, both in body and in spirit? After we are anointed with His love, are we open to where He will send us?
Jesus, thank you for the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, this gift of Your love and healing. Bless all those who are sick and suffering and in need of your divine care. We especially ask for Your intervention to end the Coronavirus outbreak and to heal all those who are suffering from its effects.