Then Jesus touched their eyes and said, “As you have believed, so let it be.” And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus gave them a stern warning, “Be careful that no one knows about this.” But as soon as they went away, they spread the news about him through the whole area.

REFLECTION:
    Throughout the time of Advent we hear a lot of predictions taken from the Book of Isaiah, the greatest of the prophets of Israel. All these texts of Isaiah constitute a teaching about the Messianic Age to come. And, as we see in today’s gospel reading, the predictions of Isaiah are shown as realized in the ministry of Jesus.
   In today’s first reading Isaiah describes the future Messianic Age in particularly glowing terms. It will be, he says, a time when even snow-covered Mt. Lebanon will become green and when, in his own words, “out of the dark and obscurity the eyes of the blind will see.” And the gospel reading presents a scene describing precisely Jesus healing two blind men.
   This scene, however, is in sharp contrast with the grand descriptions of Isaiah’s Messianic Age. It is subdued, toned down, muted. Obviously Jesus is not the flashy Messiah Isaiah imagined. His compassion indeed compels him to act and to act powerfully in favor of those who suffer. But he does not want his miracles to become spiritual fireworks for the entertainment of the crowds. He is only interested in changing hearts and in changing lives.