Cycle B - Year I:  

25 October 2015: Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical color: Green)

Gospel: Please read Mark 10:46-52

To see with the eyes of faith....

Do you realize that the first joy, as we wake up in the morning, is to see the light of a new day? For the gift of sight allows us to behold the beauty and greatness of God's creation.

So what would it be if one day everything around us were dark and gloomy, no electricity and no natural light? It would likely be the end of the world for most of us, or all of us. That is why we need to appreciate more the gift of good health and life's many blessings.

The Gospel narrative for this Sunday may be an eye opener for many of God's blessings that perhaps we take for granted because they seem so ordinary and routine already.

A blind and destitute man, by the name of Bartimaeus, sat by the

roadside of Jericho, begging for a living. He heard from the noisy crowd following Jesus that our Lord was passing. Bartimaeus cried out loud begging Jesus to heal his blindness. He was determined to get near Jesus, for he knew who Jesus was and had heard of His fame for healing. It took a lot of "guts" and persistence for Bartimaeus to get the attention of Jesus.

It paid off in the end, as Jesus said to Bartimaeus: "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately, Bartimaeus received his sight and followed our Lord.

This incident reveals something important about how God interacts with us. In the case of Bartimaeus, for example, Jesus was ready to emphatize with his suffering and also to relieve it as well. Jesus commends Bartimaeus for recognizing who He is  with the "eyes of faith" and grants his physical sight as well.

In practical life, when we are sincere and persistent with our prayer requests, the Lord will grant them. For God always answers our prayers, not always in the way and timing we petition Him, but in God's proper time and according to what is best for us. 

The other point in our reflection is the healing of Bartimaeus' blindness itself. We ask ourselves, what is really worse, physical blindness, or moral and spiritual blindness? There is moral and spiritual blindness when sin clouds the mind in darkness and closes our heart to God's love and truth; for example, when we deliberately choose to disobey God's laws over material wealth and pleasure.

The Good News is that our Lord Jesus is ready to heal us and free us from the darkness of sin and deception by the evil one through repentance. For only in the light of God's truth can we see sin for what it really is, a rejection of God and opposition to His will.

In sum, do we recognize our need for God's healing grace? Do we seek out our Lord Jesus Christ, like Bartimaeus, with persistent faith  and trust in His goodness and mercy?

This Sunday is also Prison Awareness Sunday. Let us include in our prayers all prisoners that they go back to the right path, and support the Church's prison apostolate.

In the Eucharist at Mass, let us pray: Lord, may I always be aware of my need for Your healing grace, Help me to take advantage of the opportunities You give me to seek Your presence daily and listen attentively to Your healing word. Amen.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!