Pentecost 22B (Lectionary 30)
October 24, 2021
Good Shepherd, Wells, MN
Mark 10.46-52
I think one of the worst things in life is to be ignored, to not be seen as a person. A couple of months ago I walked into a fast-food restaurant and was ignored. No one even said, “Somebody will be with you soon.” After about five or ten minutes, I left. It’s bad enough when it’s strangers that ignore you, but it’s worse when it’s somebody closer to you. I joined a fraternity my freshman year at Gustavus and was generally involved, but over time I grew disenchanted largely because of the initiation proceedings.
My senior year, the guys were wrestling with the issue of our group picture – not everyone could be there when the yearbook photographer could come. After a while of this, I quietly raised my hand and when I was finally acknowledged I simply suggested we take two pictures, one for the yearbook and one for us. The frat president looked at me, stunned, and exclaimed, “That’s a great idea O!” (My nickname.) The affirmation was hollow because until that point I had not really been seen as a valued member of the fraternity.
It’s natural to focus on the healing of blind Bartimaeus in today’s Gospel reading from Mark 10, someone who was unable to see and, because of that, unseen. Indeed, after weeks of Jesus turning our world upside down with hard sayings about what it means to follow him, a good old-fashioned miracle story seems to be a welcome reprieve. Since chapter 8 where this section on discipleship started, Jesus apparently had figured out how to heal a blind man more quickly and efficiently. There it took a bunch of spittle and mud plus two tries to get it right. Here all Jesus has to do is declare him healed and Bartimaeus can see again.
Yet, if we look deeper into the text, there are elements about seeing we might otherwise miss. As Jesus, his disciples, and the crowd leave Jericho, Bartimaeus tries to get Jesus’ attention. He calls Jesus “Son of David,” the first time this occurs in Mark. The interesting thing to note is that Bartimaeus, a blind man, sees Jesus as the Messiah (or Christ) when Jesus’ own followers don’t. The crowd and disciples, first oblivious to his presence, try to shove Bartimaeus out of sight.
It’s not until Jesus stops and asks Bartimaeus to come forward that the crowd acknowledges his presence in any meaningful way. Suddenly, Bartimaeus becomes more than background noise to them. When this happens, there are two more things Jesus does that are huge. First, Jesus stands still to meet Bartimaeus. That’s important because in Mark’s Gospel Jesus is always “on the way,” meaning that he is always headed to Jerusalem, laser-focused in his mission. But here he has a “Mr. Rogers moment,” where he stops everything he is doing for the sake of the person in front of him.
The second thing Jesus does is ask Bartimaeus, “What do you want me to do for you?” Now, that’s the same question he asks the brothers, James and John, in last week’s Gospel reading, which they muffed by asking for positions of power. Although the question seems innocent enough, it’s important because it gives Bartimaeus agency. Jesus does not presume to know what Bartimaeus needs or wants, although he probably does. Even so, Jesus treats Bartimaeus as a whole person who has the ability to direct his own life. And then Bartimaeus does what the rich man two weeks ago couldn’t: he tosses aside his only possession and follows Jesus.
It’s all too easy to be blind to people on the margins of society. And if we do see them, we assume we know what’s best for them and make decisions on their behalf without involving them. When I was working on my doctorate, I came across something called The Participatory Golden Rule: “Consequence takers ought to be decision makers.” I love that there are differently-abled people here at Good Shepherd who are seen and valued. Today’s Gospel is a reminder to make sure they are given agency and full inclusion in our congregational life. It also prompts us to open our eyes to see who else in the community is on the margins and needs to be included. That may even be the person sitting next to you in the pew, someone who is feeling left out, unseen or ignored. To see or not to see, that’s the question Jesus poses today. Thanks be to God who gives us Jesus, the Son of David, the Messiah through whom we have the eyes to see. Amen.
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