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Gospel: Mark 10: 46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more,
“Son of David, have pity on me.”
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
“Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.”
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
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.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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The first successful cataract surgeries took place in 1960. A group of individuals, many of them children blind from birth, volunteered their eyes as “guinea pigs.” One moment they lived in total darkness, the next they could see.
Their journeys were documented in the book, Space and Sight.
There are no words to fully describe the experience of seeing color, space, shadows, height, depth, movement… or the tearful face of your mother who gave you birth, for the very first time.
But for these newly healed patients, the ensuing days and weeks became increasingly difficult.
Suddenly, the world was terribly complex. These lucky (?) individuals – once blind, now able to see – struggled to learn things we take for granted, such as depth perception and facial expressions.
Seeing themselves for the first time caused some to become self-conscious. Many also became depressed after seeing hunger, poverty, and human suffering. Sadly, they couldn’t “unsee” the world around them.
One girl even locked herself inside her room for two weeks, refusing to leave. The real world was too much to bear. She preferred life in the dark, which was smaller, simpler, and safer.
Ironically, these patients were faced with the same question after surgery as they were before: “Do you want to see?”
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To some degree, they felt the same burden that Bartimaeus does in today’s Gospel. In both cases, as is true in our own lives, sight is a responsibility.
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The first face Bartimaeus sees is that of Jesus.
Then, as he looks around, he takes in the incredulous, condescending faces of the crowds who just tried silencing him.
His sight leads to a decision, which changes the rest of his life: he gets up and follows Jesus “on the way.”
Mark uses this term – “on the way” – multiple times throughout his Gospel to describe both the physical path that Jesus walks up to Jerusalem to face his death, as well as the spiritual journey of the Lord and those who follow him.
While Bartimaeus must’ve been overwhelmed when he first opened his eyes, imagine what else he saw:
Day fading into night, the outskirts of Jerusalem, a bloodthirsty crowd yelling at, spitting at, and crowning Jesus with thorns. Then his Lord – his miracle worker – nailed to a tree.
And, three days later, an empty tomb in a quiet garden, animated only by Mary Magdalene and angels.
Maybe Bartimaeus was also among the crowds whom Jesus appeared to after his resurrection.
As Saint Paul states in his first Letter to the Corinthians: “Jesus appeared to Peter, then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred people at once… Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me” (1 Corinthians 15:6-8).
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Bartimaeus holds two distinct honors: he is the last person whom Jesus encounters before he enters Jerusalem, and he’s the only person healed in Mark’s Gospel who is mentioned by name.
Prior to Bartimaeus, we encounter Peter’s mother-in-law, who lay sick with a fever, Jarius’ daughter, who was knocking on death’s door, a leper, a man paralyzed, a person possessed by an unclean spirit.
But none of them are mentioned by name.
Only Bartimaeus.
Why?
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Scholars speculate that he must’ve been known in the early Christian community, as his story provides a timeless lesson for believers.
Prior to being given the gift of physical sight, Bartimaeus has eyes of faith. When he hears that Jesus is near, he hollers from the top of his lungs until he’s heard. Then he casts aside his cloak and coins – literally everything he owns – in order to approach Jesus.
In doing so, he does the one thing the rich young man cannot: Bartimaeus parts with his possessions. Then, he uses his fresh eyes to follow Jesus.
He reminds every believer: sight is a responsibility. We’re accountable for who and what we see.
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Like Bartimaeus, or those children born with cataracts, “Do I want to see?”
Do I want to see Jesus, now present in my neighbor – hungry, tired, and thirsting for love? Do I want to see my own imperfections and need for conversion? Do I want to see the path of humility and surrender and walk it?
Or, like that girl who locked herself inside of her room, am I more comfortable being blind?
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Sight is a responsibility.
May Bartimaeus intercede for us, that his words may become our own:
“Master, I really want to see.”
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Image credits: (1) Embracing Brokenness Ministries, Blind Bartimaeus(2) (3) South Hill United Methodist Church