Walking Past Bartimaeus
Sunday, October 27, 2024 Proper 25, Year B, RCL, Track 2
Jeremiah 31:7-9, Hebrews 7:23-28, Mark 10:46-52
Each year, on Good Friday, the downtown churches get together to memorialize Jesus’ walk to Calvary, in a procession known as The Way of the Cross. Our route begins at the Old Courthouse, heads north to the Fours. During the stops, we read a passage of scripture and offer prayers. On this downtown path, as you can imagine that we encounter a variety of people. Near the old courthouse, we may find people dressed to conduct business. Near the Salvation Army, we might find folks who are underserved and unhoused. It’s not hard for me to see the parallels between these folks and blind Bartimaeus. Like Bartimaeus we see people on our streets huddled under a blanket or shrouded by a coat, lying near or on the sidewalk. When we walk this path, it’s not uncommon for a person or two to yell words of encouragement or praise. Occasionally some will join us for a block or two.
Last year a person joined us and carried the cross for a couple of blocks. Though no one said anything, it was clear that a few people were uncomfortable having this stranger join the throng and carry the cross. Though in reality, we were all strangers, not many of us really knew one another. I could imagine someone ordering this person to sit back down, to be more quiet, to mind their own business. And I believe if such a thing happened the pastors, including myself, would have been appalled.
Many faithful Christians, try to reflect on the scriptures. Within the text, we find Jesus’ example shows us how to act and treat the people we encounter, our neighbors. Using the scriptures to help us reflect on our thoughts and actions is called Theological Reflection. And it’s important that all Christians do this.
In today’s example, it’s relatively easy to see the parallels to what Jesus would have us do in such a situation. Bartimaeus, the blind beggar, gets excited as Jesus and his entourage pass by. I can’t imagine that from Bartimaeus’ perspective, he would have thought he would get to speak to Jesus. He might just have gotten excited at the prospects of a large group who might put money in his cup. The passage tells us that many in the crowd sternly ordered him to be quiet. And when they did, Bartimaeus became even louder. Becoming louder is human nature. Think of a child near you in the theater. The more the parent shushes the child the louder they get. And for me, I find that the shushing can be louder and more distracting than the noise the child is making.
We cannot know what Bartimaeus was thinking, but it’s much easier to understand what Christ was thinking. Christ saw a person, a fellow child of God, likely an Israelite. Bartimaeus would have been kicked out of the synagogue for being blind, and unclean (both physically and spiritually). Recall that this society felt blindness came from sin. But Jesus saw this person who had a spark of faith even when others could care less about him. He cries out, acknowledging that Jesus is the son of David – the Messiah. When Bartimaeus comes to Jesus and is asked what do you want from me? Bartimaeus did not say fill my cup with gold. No, he said, “let me see again.”
The gift of sight was much more than the ability to see. In first-century Palestine, sight would make Bartimaeus a whole person again. Whatever sin the Rabbis and the community members thought he or his family committed would have disappeared when he gained his vision. He could become gainfully employed. Attend services at the synagogue. He could build friendships and the ability to touch another human being, without them becoming ritually defiled. Jesus brought normality back to his life allowing him to be a person who the community would give respect and dignity.
As I alluded to earlier, we meet people in our community who resemble Bartimaeus in many ways. We know God loves them even when we have difficulty seeing their full humanity. And I would imagine that if they were approached by Jesus, they like Bartimaeus, would not ask to have their cup filled with Gold, alcohol, or drugs. They would ask to be healed, made whole again, so they could live in society the way the rest of us do.
In April of this year, a study was published in JAMA – Psychiatry, titled, “Prevalence of Mental Health Disorders Among Individuals Experiencing Homelessness.” This study appears to be the largest study of its kind, and demonstrates that over 2/3 of the homeless population have acute mental illness, and over 3/4 have had mental illness in their lifetime.[i] The study demonstrates that homelessness is not a matter of laziness, nor is it primarily a drug or alcohol problem. It is primarily a mental health problem that the entire country is grappling with, from the big cities to small towns.
I pray that the next time we encounter people who rub us the wrong way, we can step back and view them the same way Christ does, with empathy and as the children of God they are. And I pray that we, as a community, can come together to create change that will allow people to become whole again. For at the core, this is our Christina faith, that through our faith, we will be healed from what is wrong in mind, body, and spirit and that on the last day, we will be made whole, perfect, in the age to come.
[i] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2817602 April 17, 2024 Prevalence of Mental Health Disorders Among Individuals Experiencing Homelessness A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
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