I Know It All

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, March 15th, 2026:
Fourth Sunday of Lent

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John
9.1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38 1

As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.

He spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent).

Then the man who was blind went and washed, and came back able to see. The neighbours and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” Some were saying, “It is he.” Others were saying, “No, but it is someone like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.”

They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.” Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not observe the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And they were divided. So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” He said, “He is a Prophet.”

They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out.

Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshipped him.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

Today’s Gospel is one of many recollections of Jesus healing someone and the Pharisees being angry or indignant about it. If I did not already know that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God, I could possibly see the Pharisees’ point. We are called to follow certain laws or rules. For the people in the Gospel, a key rule was to rest on the Sabbath and it was a very strict law. Today it might equate to going to Mass on Sunday as a precept of the Church. 

So if we have these laws and precepts, how can I say that Jesus is the One who is doing God’s will? LOVE! Jesus knew the law and was versed in what was expected of Him, but He also knew the call to love our neighbour. It is essential, when I read the Gospel, that I recall that Jesus was not only a man but he is also God, the Word made incarnate. He saw those who were suffering and seeking healing: those who were truly, at the heart, sorrowful and longing for mercy. Jesus, in this Gospel and throughout his entire ministry, was loving God and neighbour: the greatest commandment. 

I understand that loving my neighbour is not about letting them do whatever they want and being okay with it. It is possible to love others even when I do not agree with their choices and beliefs. If you spend even a minute on secular social media apps, you will see the endless ways in which Christians and non-Christians attempt to guilt or scare other people into thinking the way they do. Words are used to scare and degrade the person they disagree with on any topic, referencing Jesus flipping tables as the scripture to back up the argument. 

I am convicted by the fact that when I face someone who does not agree with me, who seeks to scare me into believing what they believe, my response is to show sacrificial love (that is not the same as giving in to them). My response is to put love into the conversation and trust that God is the one who transforms hearts not me. After all, Jesus did not wait for us to change before He died for us!



Sr Teresa MacDonald 

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