It happened that when Jesus was approaching Jericho, Bartimaeus, a blind man, was sitting by the road, begging; and when he heard the crowd passing by, he asked what it was.
And they told him that Nazarene Jesus was passing by.
Then he cried out, saying: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!
And those who were ahead scolded him to be silent; but he cried out much more: Son of David, have mercy on me!
Jesus then, stopping, commanded to bring him into his presence; and when he arrived, he asked him, saying: What do you want me to do to you?
And he said: Lord, let him receive his sight.
Jesus said to her: Receive her, your faith has saved you.
And then he saw, and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw that, gave praise to God.
Bartimaeus: is the model of the one who "follows Jesus along the way" (Mc 10,52) to Jerusalem, where he will enter right away. Jesus has "opened his eyes," in contrast to the "blindness" of the disciples. He has taken heart before the intuited presence of Jesus, before his call, that Jesus asks that they communicate him, before the interest of Jesus for Him. He has thrown off the cloak with which he covered his prostration. The one who was out of the way and stopped, leaps towards Jesus. And for your faith in the Lord, now, finally "go". And that's why he "walks". Following Jesus.
Faith brings us closer to God, makes us hope when everything around us seems to fall apart. It makes us raise our voices when they send us to silence. It makes us ask the Lord what we need in the certainty that he will grant it to us if it really benefits our soul.
Bartimaeus knew well who he had believed in. He had probably heard about Christ, about his sermons, about his miracles. And his heart leaped with joy when he knew that the Messiah was a few steps away from where he was. And feeling that he would never again have the opportunity to receive the blessing of God, he raised his voice asking for mercy from Him who was the mercy of God incarnate. He did not let them drown his words. He could be blind but not mute. And his faith was firm. That faith restored his sight. But when he was healed he did not go home. Followed Christ.
Do we have that faith today? Will we raise our voice to the passage of our Lord when we are prostrate asking for alms to a world that can barely give us some coins of false happiness, alien to true love? Will we follow those who ask us to speak quietly so as not to disturb? Will we let Christ pass through our lives without throwing ourselves at his feet asking for mercy? Or is it that we do not need the mercy of God? And once obtained, will we retrace our steps or become true disciples of the Lord?
Let's follow the example of Bartimaeus. Today Christ approaches us in mercy. When we approach Jesus, let our soul shout: "Son of David, have mercy on me." And when we have received it, we do not return home as such. Because greater miracle and greater blessing there is in receiving the blessing of Christ that is to recover the sight. Do not let it end after leaving the temple. Let us leave it as true disciples, ready to dedicate the rest of the day to Him who gives us life.
Bartimaeus is blind. Blindness represents darkness, confusion, a not knowing where it is going, that is, it represents a man who is totally out of place. There are those who can see the things of the world, but do not know where they are going, they have not been able to locate themselves in their lives. Bartimaeus is presented as a beggar man, this makes us see that he is a dependent man, can not make a living for himself, depends on the generosity of others. Many men and women are beggars, not only of money, but of love, of attention, of affection.
Bartimaeus is blind, but not deaf. Blindness is not going to be its obstacle, when the human being wants to be free, there are no obstacles that prevent it. No disability hinders us from changing, improving, healing ourselves when we really want it. He may not see, but he may perceive what is happening around him. It is valuable to find this capacity in Bartimaeus, because men have been losing that ability to find God, in his daily step through our existence. Bartimaeus starts shouting, he does not care what the people next to him can say about their attitude. There are no formalities that worry you; His intention is to meet the Lord
The important thing is the attitude of Bartimaeus, he ignores the attempt of others to silence him, he keeps shouting. Tenacity is necessary to follow the Lord. We can not believe that everyone is going to congratulate us for our encounter with God, since there is no shortage of those who will find a way to get us back to the mud we have tried to get out of. You can not faint, it is necessary to fight tenaciously.
Jesus will never leave waiting for the one who calls him. No one who cries out to Jesus will be left without an answer. He stops his walk, Bartimaeus deserves all his attention, that's why he stops. He does not attend to the race, he does not attend it while he is walking. Jesus asks to be called and another group of people appears that does the opposite of the first. If the first one told him not to shout, to be quiet, this second group tells him: He is calling you. If there is no lack of those who try to discourage you, there is no lack of those who encourage you to meet Him.
The dialogue between Bartimaeus and Jesus is as simple as it is profound. What do you want me to do for you? If he realizes he is blind, why the question. It is necessary for man to verbalize what he needs. Naming the difficulties is the beginning of overcoming them. Bartimaeus knows what he needs. No doubt Lord, see.
The response of the Lord is not let wait: "Recover the view." Everything that is asked with faith is obtained. The power of trust and faith is greater than any human need. The problem is to come to believe and believe well. Normally we are people of little faith and because of this we can not see all the miracles that happen daily. Bartimaeus, thanks to his faith, obtains what he needs: health and salvation.
Bartimaeus begins to walk with Jesus, the one who was sitting, now walks, the one who before asked now is master of himself.
