Lent with Bossuet – Meditations on the Gospel (22)

Source: FSSPX News

Detail from the Baptism, a panel of the North Door of the Baptistery in Florence (1403-1424) – Lorenzo Ghiberti.

The Blindness of Men

Jesus makes use of the testimony of St. John the Baptist to convince those who did not want to believe in Christ Himself. John, however, had performed no miracles, and Jesus had filled all of Judea with them. John spoke like the servant, and Jesus Christ as the Son speaking of what He had seen in the bosom of His Father.

“Such is the weakness of our eyes,” says St. Augustine, “a torch suits us better than the sun. We search for the sun with a torch.” Jesus understood this very well and so He said, “I have a greater testimony than that of John” (Jn. 5:36). When, accordingly, He made use of this testimony, He brought to their weak eyes a light more proportioned to their weakness.

Profound blindness of men, more disposed to believe St. John than Jesus Christ Himself! Oh God, who would not tremble? But who would not ask You while trembling, from where came such a strange disposition into the heart of the Jews? Might there not also be something like this within ourselves? We can look for it another time; we will knock on the door to hear this secret, and maybe it will be open to us.