Word to the Wise
Thursday, March 3, 2011 - Thursday in the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
[Sir 42:15-25 and Mark 10:46-52]Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see." Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. [Mark]
From time immemorial, the five senses of sight, touch, taste, hearing and smelling have served as metaphorical language for more than the physical importance that they have for us. We use expressions such as: "I see that...." or "I hear that..." or "I am touched by..." or "I smell a rat..." or "That shows poor taste!" In the New Testament, the sense of sight is often related to faith. The gospel writers show a lot of dramatic sense in the way they recount Jesus' interactions with the blind! The Gospel of John [9:1-41] is a very good example. We have a shorter but similar interaction in today's gospel scripture, but the dynamic is the same. The faith of a blind person is contrasted with the lack of faith of those who claim to have faith. The "sizable crowd" in this story attempts to silence the cries of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar. I am put in mind of similar crowd behavior in the story of the woman with the hemorrhage and the Syro-Phoenician woman. The "crowds" can serve as an obstacle to the isolated person who is desperately trying to be heard or seen by Jesus.
Those of us who claim to "see" may fail to "see" the ones who are trying to see. We take our faith [sight] for granted and do not wish to have it disturbed by those who are crying out! Sometimes it requires a direct order from Jesus to get results: "Call him." and then perhaps we deign to admit the disturber: "Take courage, get up, Jesus is calling you." Then we learn who truly "sees" and how "blind" we have been. It is not just Bartimaeus who needs "sight" in this story. Perhaps the entire church should pray, "Lord, we want to see!" AMEN
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