Saturday, October 26, 2024

27-OCT-'24, Thirtieth Sun in OT


Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 149

Reading I
Jeremiah 31:7-9
        Thus says the LORD:
    Shout with joy for Jacob,
        exult at the head of the nations;
        proclaim your praise and say:
    The LORD has delivered his people,
        the remnant of Israel.
    Behold, I will bring them back
        from the land of the north;
    I will gather them from the ends of the world,
        with the blind and the lame in their midst,
    the mothers and those with child;
        they shall return as an immense throng.
    They departed in tears,
        but I will console them and guide them;
    I will lead them to brooks of water,
        on a level road, so that none shall stumble.
    For I am a father to Israel,
        Ephraim is my first-born.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6
R. (3)    The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
    we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
    and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

Then they said among the nations,
    "The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us;
    we are glad indeed.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
    like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those that sow in tears
    shall reap rejoicing.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

Although they go forth weeping,
    carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
    carrying their sheaves.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

Reading II
Hebrews 5:1-6
Brothers and sisters:
Every high priest is taken from among men
and made their representative before God,
to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.
He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring,
for he himself is beset by weakness
and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself
as well as for the people.
No one takes this honor upon himself
but only when called by God,
just as Aaron was.
In the same way,
it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest,
but rather the one who said to him:
    You are my son:
        this day I have begotten you;
just as he says in another place:
    You are a priest forever
        according to the order of Melchizedek.

Alleluia
Cf. 2 Timothy 1:10
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Jesus Christ destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

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.

Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections 

I Want to See

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.” Mark 10:46–47

Imagine the humiliation you might experience if your only way to survive each day was to sit on the side of the road and beg. As a blind man at that time, Bartimaeus was not able to work and support himself. Many saw his blindness as a curse from God and the result of his sin or the sins of his parents. He would have been treated as an outcast of society and as a burden to his family and community. Thus, the mental and emotional trauma a blind person experienced at that time would have been just as difficult to deal with as the physical blindness itself.

The symbolism in this story is extraordinary and teaches us many things about our Christian journey. First, we must strive to identify with Bartimaeus’ humility and weakness. On a spiritual level, we are all blind and, in our fallen natural state, we are spiritual outcasts. This means that we cannot attain Heaven by ourselves. Bartimaeus is a symbol of our fallen natural state. We need to humble ourselves every day and see ourselves as people in dire need who are incapable of saving our own souls.

Bartimaeus is also a symbol of what we must do in order to be drawn out of the blindness and misery we experience in life. The moment he heard that Jesus was walking by, he cried out for mercy. But he didn’t just cry out to our Lord. He did so with perseverance. The people who heard him crying out rebuked him and told him to stop. But their rebukes only led him to be more fervent in his prayer. Also, it appears that Jesus ignored him at first. Why would Jesus do that? It certainly wasn’t because Jesus didn’t care. It was because our Lord knew that Bartimaeus would persevere and He wanted him to do so. Jesus wanted Bartimaeus’ prayer to become more resolute, and it did.

The prayer of Bartimaeus must become the way we pray. It is very easy to become discouraged in life and to lose hope. When that happens, our prayer becomes weak and ineffective. At times, we will experience many other temptations to give up on prayer. The rebukes by the crowd are a symbol of the many temptations we will experience to give up on prayer. When those temptations come, we must double our effort and strengthen our resolve. Jesus’ silence at first must also be seen as an invitation to pray with greater faith. If we pray and feel as though God is not listening, we must know that God does hear us and His initial silence is His way of inviting us closer and to a deeper level of faith and prayer.

When Jesus stopped and told the disciples to bring Bartimaeus to Him, Bartimaeus immediately got up, threw off his cloak and went to our Lord. His cloak is a symbol of everything we need to shed in life that keeps us from immediately and quickly responding to the promptings of grace. Though there is nothing wrong with having a cloak, in that moment it was a slight hindrance to his prompt response to Jesus. So also with us; we must be ready and willing to eliminate anything that keeps us from responding to God the moment He calls to us.

Finally, Bartimaeus’ prayer was perfect. “Master, I want to see.” Spiritually speaking, we must work to foster the deepest desire to see God, to see our Lord. If we desire the gift of faith, the ability to see spiritual truths and understand them, then our Lord will answer that prayer. Our Lord will also say to us, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.”

Reflect, today, upon this poor blind beggar, Bartimaeus. See in his humble soul a model of how you must see yourself and of how you must pray. Observe the humility of your fallen state, the isolation you experience from your sin, and the perseverance you need to have in prayer. Follow the example of Bartimaeus, and our Lord will remove the blindness of your heart so that you can follow Him more fully every day.

Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body 

AN EYE-OPENING NOVENA

“ ‘Rabboni,’ the blind man said, ‘I want to see.’ Jesus said in reply, ‘Be on your way! Your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and started to follow Him up the road.” —Mark 10:51-52

To live God’s Word (see Jas 1:22), we must pray God’s Word. I invite you to pray a novena to be free from spiritual blindness. For nine days, pray: “I want to see” (Mk 10:51).

Most Christians believe that other people, including their spouses, family members, neighbors, and fellow workers, need to see much better spiritually. The sin, injustice, abortion, racism, and oppression in our culture of death prove that we live in an epidemic of spiritual blindness. Nevertheless, we find it difficult to believe that we are spiritually blind or even that we have planks in our eyes while others may have only specks in theirs (Mt 7:5). We are tempted to react like the Pharisees when they said to Jesus: “You are not calling us blind, are You?” (Jn 9:40)

You may be so holy that you are not spiritually blind. Yet are you certain that you have 20/20 vision spiritually? If you’re blind to being blind, you are trapped. If you’re not sure you have 20/20 spiritual vision, pray the novena to be freed from spiritual blindness. Try to go to Mass daily or as often as possible. Go to Confession. Pray daily: “I want to see.” Invite others to join you. Write and tell us the good news.

Prayer:  Father, in this novena teach me about myself.

Promise:  “I will gather them from the ends of the world, with the blind and the lame in their midst.” —Jer 31:8

Praise:  Praise Jesus, our risen Lord and Love! Alleluia!

Reflection 3
Shared from God's Word

Today’s Gospel presents three dynamics of the process of restoration represented by three characters: a) Jesus as the main character of the story is walking towards Jerusalem. He has complete control over the situation.  b) The crowd is presented as an obstacle in the process of salvation: However, Jesus heeds the plea of the blind man and commands the crowd to bring the blind man to him. c) The blind man is presented as the proof of completion of the process of salvation: This process includes divine grace and human co-operation. The blind man uses his faculties of hearing and speech and cries for help. He obeys the suggestions of the crowd. His sight is restored. Where am I in the process of salvation brought about by Jesus? Am I an obstacle in this process? Do I use my God-given faculties in order to restore my lost paradise?   

Prayers
My healing Lord, by myself I am weak, a beggar and a sinner. My only hope is to cry out to You in my need and to do so with much zeal. Please do restore my sight, dear Lord. Heal me and help me to see You so that I can follow You wherever You lead. Jesus, I trust in You.

Lord Jesus, may I never fail to recognize my need for your grace and mercy. Strengthen my faith and trust in you that I may seek your presence daily and listen to your word with a readiness to follow you who are my All.

Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy

Reflection 300: Revealing the Secrets of Your Soul
It is actually quite consoling to have someone with whom you can reveal the depths of your soul.  This sort of confidant is a great blessing when absolute confidentiality, mercy and understanding are offered.  Speaking even of your sins without hesitation can bring much healing when the person with whom we share these things responds with perfect love and is able to offer you the Mercy of God.  We all need such a confidant.  But in truth we do!  We have the priest, waiting for us in the glorious Sacrament of Reconciliation.  His confidentiality is certain, his compassion and mercy is offered and the forgiveness and Mercy of God is poured forth upon the deepest and darkest secrets in your heart.  Do not hesitate and do not delay in going to Confession.  You need this gift from our Lord and He will bless you with an abundance of His Mercy through it (See Diary #1464).

Reflect honestly upon the deepest and “darkest” sin in your heart.  What is it that you fear revealing the most?  The Lord desperately desires to enter into that darkness and bring the healing balm of His light and Mercy.  Do let Him in through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  The power of this Sacrament is unmatched and is exactly what you need to begin your healing and to be set free from your burdens.  Do not fear it and do not put it off.  Make an act of faith today in this glorious Sacrament and you will be amazed at the effect that it has on your life.

Lord, please give me courage to confess my sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  Please also give me the wisdom to know that this is among Your greatest gifts.  In this Sacrament I encounter Your Mercy to the greatest degree.  Thank You, dear Lord, for this priceless gift.  Jesus, I trust in You.

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