THIRTIETH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR - B

THIRTIETH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR – B: (Jer 31:7-9; Ps 125; Heb 5:1-6; Mark 10:46-52) Theme: We are the Community that makes possible interaction between God and man Reflection: We need to create a space of confidence towards Jesus - We are in the thirtieth Sunday of the year. It means that we are coming closer to the completion of the liturgical year of B. We have only four more weeks to go. In the context of these last days of the year, the Church invites us to recall all that God has done in the year that is moving backwards. The responsorial Psalm reminds it: The Lord has done great things for us (Ps 126:2). This is not only an affirmation of faith. But also it is an invitation to recapture and to summarize all the gifts, the marvels, and the great things that God has done in our daily life. We should not confuse with the ricapitulation of our whole walk thoughout the year. It is not that each Sunday God gives us a different gift and now we need to collect them into one basket. God’s highest gift for us is Jesus Christ who is always present with and in us through the Eucharistic Celebration. In fact, each Holy Mass is the mystery of Jesus in its entirely. We should not break it. But each Sunday the Church has been guiding us in our way towards our christian perfection unveiling to us step by step the characters of the Christ’s mystery. We need to thank God for this ultimate gift of His Son. We need to gather together all the amazing works of God in our life. This Sunday calls us for this task. In order to collect and recollect them, in mind and heart, we need to create a space: space for the mystery of Jesus. - An attitude of seeing God’s work in us: What do we do by creating a space for the mystery of Jesus? And why do we have a need of a space at all? An answer for these questions is this: God, who is naturally good, merciful and loving, does act within us and in our lives but we need to observe and accept them as His. God’s marvellous works may not be always in the great manifestations. God operates even with the slightest and minute ways. We often fail to see his presence with us. We often ignore that good that happens to us. We often wait for the great things that radically and suddendly happen in our life. We often expect that God has to hold us directly with our hand and guide us. This is our human expectation. We manifest often our blindness in watching the deeds of God. It is understandable. But God acts as he wills and where he will and how he wills. He does everything in his manner. We need to see them. We need to embrace them with great faith. We need to accept them as his gifts. This is what God wants from us. His gifts cannot be ignored and rejected by us. He wants that we have the eyes to see and a good sight to observe them. How can we see them? We can see them only when we create a space for God. We need to reflect on every moment of our life. We need to imbibe an attitude of attention to what God is accomplishing in and through us. We need to come out of our blindedness. We need to open wide our eyes of trust. - The blind man of Gospel is our strength and example: The attitude of blind man is in creating a space for Jesus. This is what is asked of the disciples and of us by Jesus. Today’s Gospel passage builds the bridge between the last Sunday’s message and today’s. In the last Sunday we have see Jesus posing them a question: what is you want from me? And the two sons of Zabadee ask Jesus to grant them two posts in his kingdom, one at right and one at left (Mark 10:35-38). The similar question is posed by Jesus to the blind man: what to do you want from me? His request is for the restoration of the sight. We can note well that the question of Jesus is same always but only the attitude of various people is different: disciples ask for the important posts and the blind man for the well being. What is the difference between them? What made them to act with different manner? The difference lies in creating a space for Jesus: space of trust and space of grace. The disciples creating a space for themselves. In stead, the blind man creating a space for Jesus. We need to ask Jesus for this: “so that I may see, Lord” (Gospel). Seeing means creating a space for the interaction with the Lord. Seeing means manifesting a total trust in his work. Seeing means embracing the salvation that Jesus offers for us. The blind man of the Gospel has done it and he is encouraging us to do the same: to create a space so that Jesus saves us. Readings: Jesus’ act of salvation is manifested in the integral healing of man - A journey from the Desert to the Rivers of water (first reading): In the first reading we come across the story of the people of Israel who were under the slavery and their journey into the land of freedom and life. The prophet Jeremiah speaks of the people of different situations: people who are blind, limp, who are with the sufferings and with the lamentations. He speaks of the salvation of these people: God leads them again from the land of exile to the rivers of water. They were in the cry but are guided to the consolation (Jer 31:9). They were in the deportation of Babylon and now they are in their return to Jerusalem. The salvation that God brings is the integral well being of man. Man is whole only when he enjoys the freedom of bieng God’s children. God, by delivering them from the slavery of sin and suffering, brings them into the dignity of liberation: He restores to them the true image of His children. Therefore, this is the pasqual journey of the people of Israel. It is the journey of grace because God, as the merciful and kind Father, listens to their cry for help. It is the journey of grace because God, in his loving initiative, brings them from the land of perdition and disperation to the land of joy and peace. God restores their life in its integrity and this is the salvation that God offers to man. The similar instance happens in the Gospel. - A movement from the physical blindness to the spiritual interaction with Jesus: Gospel presents to us an interaction between two persons. It is a meeting of two hearts. It is a movement of two lives. There is a reciprocal movement: not one way but double way. From the human point of view, there is a blind man who first of listens to the passage of Jesus and shouts for help: he comes to know that Jesus is passing by; does not waste even a single moment; does not feel ashamed either because of public or because of his condition; but comes forward crying out to Jesus to come and do something for him; this movement of his shows an immense and unwavering confidence in Jesus. From the divine point of view, there is Jesus who moves his heart towards the blind man: Jesus stops, asks him to come closer, finds out what he wants from him and finally gives back the sight, this movement of Jesus shows an immense and never deteriorating love towards the human need. With this reciprocal movement the miracle happens. Miracle is not possible only with one sided action. Prior action has to be interacted with the necessary response. Only then something unusual and extraordinary takes place. This is manifested in the healing of the blind man by Jesus. If the blind man was not to recognize who Jesus was and was not in the position to call upon him for the help, the situation would have been different. If Jesus was not to be attentive to the cries of the blindman, the healing would have been difficult. The movement from the both sides made possible an interaction between them. And this interaction between the need of man and the attention of Jesus made possible a miracle. Finally, everything is restored: blind man started seeing again. He makes a movement from the physical blindness tot he spiritual interaction with Jesus. - The salvation of Jesus is the integral restoration of man: With the miraculous healing of blind man Jesus proposes what kind of salvation he has come to bring. He came to restore man to the image and likness of God: this is the only salvation he intends. Man has lost his image because of the physical disabilities and also because of the spiritual failures. Jesus’ mission is call man back to the integrity, totality and wholeness. Jesus himself has revealed this in his words and deeds and all the healing acts are the manifestation of the design of salvation. In reality, his evangelizing action consists in the intense process he initiates for the individual healing and social healing and he infact reveals it that he “came to seek and save the lost” (Lk 19:10). His message to his predecessor John the Baptist is the same message of bringing man to the total healing: “Go and refer to John all that you have heard and have seen: the blind have received the sight, the limp walk, the lepers are healed, the deaf are able to listen, the dead rise again, to the poor the good news is preached” (Math 11:4-5). There are many other innumerous references in which the salvation of Jesus is manifested in the physical healing and spiritual restoration of man. Even Peter proclaims that Jesus has healed and saved all those who are under the power of the devil (Act 10:38). In all these one element is evident: that Jesus has come to save man and his saving action is first of all for the restoration of man to his totality of being God’s child. Conclusion: Our proclamation to the world: “Do not be afraid! Get up! He is calling you!” - We need to guide the discouraged and disperate to Jesus: we have seen that Jesus has come to heal the man and to offer him the totality of salvation. It is Jesus’ mission. His mission is always through the various means he choses. He selects his disciples to be the mediators between Him and the world. It is crystal clear in today’s Gospel. If we summarize the whole context it is understood well. There are three important personalities in the gospel account: o First, the blind man: he realizes the passage of Jesus; acknowledges the power of his presence; expresses his need of being healed of his blindeness. o Second, Jesus: he listens to the voice of the needy blind man; he understands that his request is sincere and true; he accepts the space of trust he has created for him; he finds out what he wants from him; finally he heals him as he has desired. o Both the story is not over with this. Jesus would have done it personally without any others medium of help. But Jesus desires that there is someone in the middle. He himself creates a need for the mediator: because he knows the role of mediator well since he himself is the mediator between God and man. Thus, he brings into the scene the third personality: the role of the disciples. He sends his disciples to call him. The disciples have brought the blind man to Jesus. o Third, the apostles: therefore, we see the role of the apostles now. The words they utter are very meaningful and encouraging. They say to the blind man: Do not be afraid! Get up! He calls you! (Gospel). The interaction between the blind man and Jesus, which could have well been private and individual, takes place infact with the mediation of the apostle. This is the will of Jesus for the apostles: he wills that his followers have to be the mediators between the needy of the world and the salvation of God. o Now, we are the followers of Jesus. We need to be a community which brings each needy faithful to the presence of Jesus. We need to repeat the beautiful words of the apostles in today’s gospel. Jesus wants us to be the mediators between Him and the world. We need to proclaim to man who is desperate and discouraged: O you! Who is in need of restoration! Do not worry about your life! There is one who takes care of you! There is one who loves you! There is one who always calls you to his side! It is Jesus. Courage! Come, for he is constantly calling you! o How often we repeat these words to those who are in need? How often we manifest ourselves as the community that makes possible an interaction between the world and God? How after we are ready to carry the cries of pain, burdens of the suffering of our fellow brethern to Jesus taking the place of his mediators? Let us learn to the community which carries the need of others to Jesus and which fetches to them the grace of Jesus. In a word, let us learn to the place of interaction between Jesus and our fellow being. - Complete trust in Jesus makes us his disciples: Like the blind man in the Gospel, we need to get back our sight: we need to get back our life in him. Often we are floating on the passing waters of the worldly powers and desires. Often we lose our trust in him because of the science and technology which questions the reality of God and which creates in us, thus, the doubts of faith. Often we express our infidelty to Jesus because of constant struggles of life. Amidst all these situations, we are given today an example of renewing our trust in Jesus: the example of the blindman. The true and authentic disciples is the one who proclaims his proper faith and gives the testimony to it with the life. This is the mission that each of us, every christian, is entrusted by the Church: to help others and to bring them near to Jesus. Such is the mission of the Church: she participates in the joys and in the hopes, in the anguishes and in the sorrowfulness of the men; she takes the side of every man and every woman, every place and every time; she carries a good news to them. Let us be a Church of similar attitude: let us be the mediators of God’s grace to the world. Eucharistic celebration is the moment of interaction between Jesus and us: God invites us to his presence, throws on us the light of the Word, feeds us with the life of the Bread, and finally restores to us the integrity of being.