Vatican City, 24 October 2015 (VIS) –
This Sunday the Pope celebrated Mass for the conclusion of the 14th
Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. In his homily, he
reflects on the day's three readings that show us the compassion and
paternity of God, revealed in Jesus.
“In the midst of a national disaster,
the people deported by their enemies, the prophet Jeremiah proclaims
that 'the Lord has saved His people, the remnant of Israel'. Why did
He save them? Because He is their Father; and as a Father, He takes
care of His children and accompanies them on the way, sustaining 'the
blind and the lame, the women with child and those in labour'. His
fatherhood opens up for them a path forward, a way of consolation
after so many tears and great sadness. If the people remain faithful,
if they persevere in their search for God even in a foreign land, God
will change their captivity into freedom, their solitude into
communion: what the people sow today in tears, they will reap
tomorrow in joy.
“We too have expressed, with the
Psalm, the joy which is the fruit of the Lord’s salvation: 'our
mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongues with shouts of joy'.
A believer is someone who has experienced God’s salvific action in
his life. We pastors have experienced what it means to sow with
difficulty, at times in tears, and to rejoice for the grace of a
harvest which is beyond our strength and capacity. The passage from
the Letter to the Hebrews shows us Jesus’ compassion. He also 'is
beset with weakness', so that He can feel compassion for those in
ignorance and error. Jesus is the great high priest, holy and
innocent, but also the high priest Who has taken on our weakness and
been tempted like us in all things, save sin. For this reason He is
the mediator of the new and definitive covenant which brings us
salvation.
“Today’s Gospel is directly linked
to the First Reading: as the people of Israel were freed thanks to
God’s fatherhood, so too Bartimaeus is freed thanks to Jesus’
compassion. Jesus has just left Jericho. Even though He has only
begun His most important journey, which will take Him to Jerusalem,
He still stops to respond to Bartimaeus’ cry. Jesus is moved by his
request and becomes involved in his situation. He is not content to
offer him alms, but rather wants to personally encounter him. He does
not give him any instruction or response, but asks him: 'What do you
want me to do for you?'. It might seem a senseless question: what
could a blind man wish for if not his sight? Yet, with this question
made face to face, direct but respectful, Jesus shows that He wants
to hear our needs. He wants to talk with each of us about our lives,
our real situations, so that nothing is kept from Him. After
Bartimaeus’ healing, the Lord tells him: 'Your faith has made you
well'. It is beautiful to see how Christ admires Bartimaeus’ faith,
how He has confidence in him. He believes in us, more than we believe
in ourselves.
“There is an interesting detail.
Jesus asks His disciples to go and call Bartimaeus. They address the
blind man with two expressions, which only Jesus uses in the rest of
the Gospel. First they say to him: 'Take heart!', meaning 'have
faith, strong courage!'. Indeed, only an encounter with Jesus gives a
person the strength to face the most difficult situations. The second
expression is 'Rise!', as Jesus said to so many of the sick, whom He
took by the hand and healed. His disciples do nothing other than
repeat Jesus’ encouraging and liberating words, leading him
directly to Jesus, without lecturing him. Jesus’ disciples are
called to this, even today, especially today: to bring people into
contact with the compassionate Mercy that saves. When humanity’s
cry, like Bartimaeus’, becomes stronger still, there is no other
response than to make Jesus’ words our own and, above all, imitate
His heart. Moments of suffering and conflict are for God occasions of
mercy. Today is a time of mercy.
“There are, however, some temptations
for those who follow Jesus. … None of the disciples stopped, as
Jesus did. They continued to walk, going on as if nothing were
happening. If Bartimaeus was blind, they were deaf: his problem was
not their problem. This can be a danger for us: in the face of
constant problems, it is better to move on, instead of letting
ourselves be bothered. In this way, just like the disciples, we are
with Jesus but we do not think like Him. … We are able to speak
about Him and work for Him, but we live far from His heart, which is
reaching out to those who are wounded. This is the temptation: a
'spirituality of illusion'”.
“There is a second temptation, that
of falling into a 'scheduled faith'. We are able to walk with the
People of God, but we already have our schedule for the journey,
where everything is listed: we know where to go and how long it will
take; everyone must respect our rhythm and every problem is a bother.
... Jesus, on the other hand, wants to include, above all those kept
on the fringes who are crying out to Him. They, like Bartimaeus, have
faith, because awareness of the need for salvation is the best way of
encountering Jesus”.
“Dear Synod Fathers, we have walked
together”, he concluded. “Thank you for the path we have shared
with our eyes fixed on Jesus and our brothers and sisters, in the
search for the paths which the Gospel indicates for our times so that
we can proclaim the mystery of family love. Let us follow the path
that the Lord desires. Let us ask Him to turn to us with His healing
and saving gaze, which knows how to radiate light, as it recalls the
splendour which illuminates it. Never allowing ourselves to be
tarnished by pessimism or sin, let us seek and look upon the glory of
God, which shines forth in men and women who are fully alive”.
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