30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

1. Bartimaeus may have been a poor man who could not see but he was not blind to who Jesus was. In fact, in that respect, he saw very well indeed! He saw, and he saw better than many of his contemporaries. His faith made him able to see very well that Jesus was the Son of David, the Saviour, and so he looked to him for salvation: “Jesus”, he cried out, “Have pity on me.” Jesus saw this poor blind man’s faith and gave him back his sight, telling him, “Go, your faith has saved you.”

 2. From the earliest times, Christians have recognised that their faith was enlightenment, that it was a new way of seeing. And if we examine our own religious experience, we may well realise to our surprise perhaps that our faith is also a new way of seeing. If you are parents, you will know that your child is not just the result of the fusion of genetic substances, but is a unique and priceless person who is both gift of your love and gift from God. Our faith gives us a new way of seeing which perceives God’s purpose for our lives. When we consider our own existence, we recognise that we are not simply the result of a random process in a random world, but that we were created by God in his image and likeness and He loves each one of us personally and that our life has purpose in God’s design for humanity. And – although this is more challenging – we know that when something awful happens, like a natural disaster or a personal tragedy or an evil act of man, we recognise that human beings are not condemned to live in fear and in sadness, but that every unfortunate circumstance of our existence can be lived with a faith and trust in God that changes that experience to make us better human beings, and, if that is not immediately possible (because some people have terrible things to bear), we sense that God will never let evil triumph absolutely because his purpose for humanity is always good. This is the new way of seeing, the enlightenment, that fills our minds and hearts when we put our trust in Jesus and say with Bartimaeus, “Jesus, have pity on me.” 

3. And in coming to Mass here this morning, when the scriptures are read, we hear human words and human language, but in these words we recognise the Word of God and we know that God is engaging personally with his Church and with each one of us. And in offering bread and wine to God for this liturgy, we recognise that this bread and wine will become body and blood of Christ as the spiritual nourishment of our pilgrimage through this life to eternal life. This too is the new sight, the enlightenment, which comes from our faith in Christ. 

4. So we may not think of ourselves as deeply spiritual or religious people, but if we believe in the Lord and if we share the insights of the Church’s faith, then we already have a new sight, an enlightenment that comes from our faith. And this is a great gift, to be cherished by prayer and reflection and to be passed on to our children and young people. It is a great gift because it means that we are not walking through this life blindly, but with a new sight, an enlightenment, which comes from our faith and which allows us to see not just passing things, but the mysteries of God.

 St. Margaret’s, Johnstone

29^th October 2006