The Seeing Faith

10-27-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Bing Colasito

When Bartimaeus heard the Lord passing by, he cried out, Jesus, son of David, have pity on me! It was a desperate and distressed cry but also a cry of FAITH. The man trusted someone he had not seen with a firm and strong FAITH. He could not see with his eyes, but his faith allowed him to see with his HEART. We have not seen Jesus, but by the grace of God, we believe and hope to see Him one day.

What do you want me to do for you? Isn’t it the same question Jesus asked the Apostles James and John last Sunday? The blind beggar answers directly: I want to see. The touching account of the healing of Bartimaeus reminds us of the same question Jesus asks us: What do you want me to do for you? Let us learn from Bartimaeus. Have the courage to approach Jesus and bring our illness, helplessness, and blindness to Him. Pray for the faith and perseverance of Bartimaeus. Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door shall open. (Mt. 7:7)

The second reading describes Jesus as more than a healer; He is the High Priest. He offers the ultimate sacrifice, not the blood of animals but His (own) blood. The sacrifice of Jesus is the expiatory element in the sacrament of reconciliation extending mercy to sinners of humble and contrite hearts. Seeing our weakness and fallenness, we cry for mercy and healing like Bartimaeus. Leave our roadside station, cry out and pray loud toward Jesus, throw away all the cloaks of doubts, and approach Him with FAITH. Trusting Jesus this way is like hearing His words after the priest gives the absolution in the sacrament of reconciliation: Go in peace! Your faith has healed you.

Prophecies proclaim that the Messiah to come will be the Son of David. But it takes Bartimaeus to see that He has already come. The prophecy of Jeremiah is present in the words and works of Jesus He comes to deliver the blind as He did with Bartimaeus. Bartimaeus sees in his heart that Jesus is the awaited Messiah, the healer, and the teacher. Only a person with great faith calls JesusRabboni, the same title Mary Magdalene uses to address the risen Lord on Easter morning (Jn. 20:16).

What can we learn from Bartimaeus? He follows Jesus after receiving his eyesight on the road to Jerusalem. Bartimaeus leaves everything behind and abandons his former way of life to follow Jesus. We pray for a similar faith journey every time we approach Jesus for mercy. The Lord has done great things for us, and our joy is complete.

We pray for courage like Bartimaeus. Rabboni, I want to see. Lord, strip us of all blindness and shortsightedness. Lord, help us to see the big picture with the eyes of faith and love. Somebody says: Unless we try to see the world, the way God sees it, we will never get beyond mere appearances. Jesus, may we hear you tell us: Go your way; your faith has saved you. Lord, open the eyes of our hearts to see in FAITH the wonders of your MERCY and LOVE.