The Blind Cannot Lead the Blind

by David Lins  |  03/03/2019  |  (Being) Catholic Matters

In Luke 6:39, Jesus suggests the blind cannot lead the blind. On the surface, this is common sense. In youth ministry, we used to do trust walks. One teen would be blindfolded and the other would guide them through an obstacle course. These would’ve gone horribly wrong if both teens were blindfolded. (In truth, they sometimes went wrong anyway. My youth group teens got easily distracted - while guiding a blindfolded friend through an obstacle course. Truestory. ...but I digress…)

Jesus didn’t have a problem with Stevie Wonder. He was actually talking about people who were spiritually blind to their own sin. How can we expect to lead people to Christ when we are steeped in sin we don’t acknowledge but are all too happy to point out everyone else’s flaws?

Have you ever heard of someone who had an amazing public persona, only to have it ruined with a personal experience? A celebrity, teacher, or director of faith formation who seemed so wonderful...and then you had a personal conversation with them...and the pedestal crumbled before your eyes?

A qualification to spiritual leadership is not perfection. The qualification is actually the sober view and realization of one’s flaws and the effort to be more Christ-like each day. (Humility.) Many of us, in our vanity, prefer soft lighting when someone takes our picture. Why? Bright lights reveal imperfections. In the spiritual life, we want to draw near to the light of Christ so our flaws can be revealed and we can ask the Lord to heal them.

Lord, help us to see what holds us back from Your will.

Questions? Comments? Email David at dlins@oloj.org.