The Rainbow Delusion

Once upon a time there lived an odd people in a land where every baby was born blind.  The blind people were intelligent and learned not only to cope but also to discover the word around them through the limited senses they had. They built societies and generated traditions quite suitable for a blind civilization.

Then one day an extraordinary thing happened. A loving stranger appeared from far away, a man who could not only see, but who had medicine to cure others of their blindness.  This amazing man healed many people. They followed the stranger and learned from him as he taught them.  The “cured ones” rejoiced as they discovered exquisite the beauty of flowers, sunsets, birds and rainbows.  They spread the wonderful news to their friends.

For a while great crowds followed the stranger, seeking a cure for blindness.  But as unusual as it may sound, many of the blind people hated the stranger and his followers.  Some shouted, “Who do you think you are, telling us that we are incomplete people. We were quite satisfied with ourselves before you came. We have our long-established ways of coping with reality. Now you are telling us our traditions are inadequate and you want us to accept your new way of life?”  Resentment grew until the blind ones decided to kill the stranger who brought the medicine and teaching about a new way of life.  They killed him.  But the healer used an even stronger medicine, one that cured death. So I’m sure you won’t be surprised when I tell you that he came back to life after three days in the grave. 

The risen healer showed himself to his sighted followers. Then the stranger returned to his own country. He promised to return some day and take them to live in a land that is even more beautiful than anyone can imagine. Just before he left, he gave the his sighted followers unlimited supplies of the healing medicine and told them to go throughout the whole land and heal anyone who wanted to see. 

Today millions of people have new eyes to see a wondrous world of flowers, sunsets, birds and rainbows.  They too love the risen healer and long for his return. But in the meantime they obey his last words and take the good news of healing to the ends of the earth. 

Even today the blind opposition still mocks the sighted ones.  Blind scientists write books claiming that rainbows are a delusion, mere superstitions that can’t be proved by rationalistic scientific method.  One blind scientist, Dr. Snikwad wrote a scathing book accusing sighted people of being pre-modern delusionals, blaming them for the problems of the world.  Dr. Snikwad closed his ears to the thousands of sighted scientists who follow the wounded healer, scientists who acknowledge they too believe in reason and the scientific method. They plead with the good Dr. to open his eyes, not to a different reality, but to a broader, wider, richer and deeper reality that includes science and reason. Not only does the wounded healer open up a richer world to the sighted ones, but for the first time they see meaning in life as well as color; shining a light on true beauty.  

“Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened. . . .

Gladness and joy will overtake them,

And sorrow and signing will flee away.”

(Isaiah 35:5,10)