Daily Reflection Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time

Bartimaeus was a blind beggar. He would sit by the roadside in the city of Jericho hoping to score a few coins. Jericho was a big city and many wealthy people passed through. It’s not very different from what we see on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan: beggars on the sidewalk, milling about the millionaires, calling out for spare change. 



In the gospel story Jesus walked by with his disciples and a crowd following him. When Bartimaeus heard the commotion and that it was Jesus passing by, he called to him, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” He got Jesus’ attention. So Jesus called him over and healed him. Like with all of Jesus’ healings, he was healed immediately and completely. 



Jesus might have thought, “I wish my disciples had such sight.” How many times in the gospel do we hear how Jesus gets frustrated because his disciples miss the meaning of his message. They heard him speak with authority, surpassing the scribes and Pharisees. They saw his miracles: healing the sick, forgiving sinners, raising the dead, calming a storm at sea. Still they were not sure that he was the Messiah. 

St. Luke puts the question to us today. Do we claim to be followers of the Lord but allow the uncertainties to cloud our view so that we are blind to the truth? Or can we copy Bartimaeus, casting off those uncertainties and going all in with the Lord? 

He is calling you.