God Who Cares!

Sunday, October 27, 2024

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jer 31: 7-9; Heb 5:1-6; Mk 10: 46-52

The thirtieth Sunday invites us to reflect on the God who is personally involved in the lives of His people. 

The three readings give us ample evidence for the benevolence of God toward human misery. 

The first reading from Jeremiah is taken from what biblical scholars name ‘The Book of Consolation’ (30:1-31:40) because it proclaims a message of hope and restoration for Israel. God promises to gather His people from the Babylonian exile, bringing back a remnant from the farthest reaches where they have been scattered. God assures them of compassion and guidance, especially for the most vulnerable – the blind and the lame, those with children and those in labor. God’s love and mercy will lead His people to a place of safety and abundance. The caring God offers joy and consolation to people through His message of restoration and renewal. 

The second reading highlights the compassion and holiness of Jesus, the high priest. As a mediator between God and humanity, the high priest, chosen by God, must be able to empathize with people, and offer sacrifice for their sins. While Jesus, the Son of God, who became a human, could fulfill this role, he stood apart from other high priests, especially in his holiness and compassion. Thus, in his human nature, Jesus the high priest shared human life with all its struggles. But, in his divine nature, Jesus offered a perfect and eternal mediation between God and humanity. Jesus, the humble and compassionate High Priest, invites us to imitate his example of life-altering love and supreme sacrifice. 

Today’s Gospel can be understood from the viewpoint of three different characters. 

Bartimaeus: He is the protagonist of today’s Gospel. We find in him a newer form of compelling appeal that even attracts God’s attention. Bartimaeus is excited about the fact that his healing is passing by in the person of Jesus. Not wanting to miss the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, he shouts the name of Jesus even with his identity as the Son of David. We must note that Bartimaeus’ appeal was not just verbal. One can never miss the non-verbal cues too. He increases the tone of his voice when others put him down. He shouts the name of Jesus so loudly that it reaches the ears of Jesus, even surpassing the noise the crowd of followers must have made. What we must also observe is what Bartimaeus does after winning the attention of Jesus. He behaves healed. In other words, He anticipates his healing the moment Jesus asks him to come to him. Bartimaeus throws aside his cloak so that he is sure of not returning to begging. He jumps to his feet in sure hopes that his life of disability is over. It is because of his purposeful attitude that wanted healing from Jesus that he received his sight as a gift of his faith. By what he achieves, Bartimaeus is our exemplar and model in faith. 

Crowd: The crowd’s behaviour is inconsistent. When Jesus could not hear Bartimaeus, the crowd’s response was one of discouragement and rebuke. But when Jesus hears him, it cheers him up. But the crowd’s response does not affect Bartimaeus’ determination to be healed by Jesus. 

Jesus: It would have been understandable if Jesus walked past Bartimaeus because he had a large crowd to attend to him. But nothing distracts Jesus from the earnest appeal of Bartimaeus. The Good Shepherd listens to the plea of one lost sheep. Bartimaeus’ shout for help is not some random noise for Jesus. Rather, he takes it personal and looks kindly upon the one who makes the appeal. Jesus, the High Priest, makes our lives whole just as he transforms the life of Bartimaeus. 

The three readings invite us to proclaim the Gospel of love and care to God’s people. 

1.The restoration and renewal of God’s people is our work too. God cares for the suffering humanity by sending each one of us into the world. We cannot fail God. 

2. The role of Jesus, the high priest who sympathizes with his people, is a model for Christian solidarity. Christians cannot be indifferent to the plights of the suffering humanity. Jesus took upon himself our humanity so that we may put on his divinity. The solidarity of Jesus calls for imitation. 

3. Bartimaeus is our model of faith. He teaches us that recognizing God changes everything. The purpose-driven Bartimaeus who resolutely clings to the name of Jesus is our elder brother in faith. 

Christian vocation is about sharing God’s love and concern with others. Let us pray for the grace to be the emissaries of God’s merciful love and protective care. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar