Last Sunday’s readings speak of gathering in the lost and scattered and the mercy of God.

In the first reading, the Lord rejoices at the salvation of the remnant of Israel on their return to the Promised Land after seventy years of exile in Babylon. The exile was a just punishment for their past infidelity. As prophesied by Jeremiah; they were taken as prisoners by the King of Babylon. They had left their beloved land in tears and mourning.  Now a remnant, who had remained faithful to the Lord, came back rejoicing. This faithful remnant was the seed from the new People of God, the Church, would emerge.

In the second reading, the letter to the Hebrews reminds us that the Lord, our High Priest, in becoming man, took up the human condition, to save us and make it easier for us to identify with Him and to turn to Him with faith and trust.

In the Gospel, Jesus fulfils the prophecies and revelation of the fullness of divine mercy.  He gives sight to the blind, cures lepers, heals paralytics, casts out demons, feeds multitudes and gives hope to the needy. However, Jesus always requires complete Faith in Him. In addition to the twelve, there were many others who followed Him. As Jesus was leaving Jericho to travel to Jerusalem, a blind beggar Bartimeus was sitting by the roadside when he heard the crowd passing by.  He had heard of the miracles performed by Jesus and he enquired of someone who it was passing by. When told it was Jesus he shouted out: 

Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me.

Bartimeus who lived in complete darkness sensed that this was his moment. When people tried to keep him quiet, he shouted all the louder: 

Son of David, have pity on me. 

Although physically blind, spiritually Bartimeus saw things more clearly than others, because he had stronger faith. Jesus stopped and said: 

Call him here.

So, throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and was led to Jesus and then threw himself at the Lord’s feet. Jesus asked: 

What do you want Me to do for you?

Master, led me see again,replied Bartimeus. Jesus said:

Go, your faith has saved you.

Immediately Bartimeus’s sight returned, and he joyfully followed Jesus along the road.

Bartimeus teaches us to persevere in prayer, despite obstacles and to believe that our prayers will be answered.  The main form of blindness though, in todays’ world is people’s blindness to their sinfulness and need of God’s mercy. A lot of Catholics have forgotten about Confession and that Jesus gives sanctifying grace through the Sacraments. As Good Shepherd He feeds and heals us especially through His Word and Sacraments.  For example, in Confession, the Blood of Jesus flows over us from Calvary and cleanses us of sin.

Jesus said through St Faustina: 

I Myself am waiting for you in the Confessional. I’m only hidden by the Priest, but it is I Myself who act in the soul. Jesus also explained that the greatest miracles take place and are incessantly repeated in the Confessional. [Diary 1602]. Even if a person where like a decaying corpse (spiritually), so that from a human standpoint, they would be considered hopeless; it is not so with God. The miracle of Divine Mercy restores the soul in full. The greater the sinner, the greater the mercy. 

However, we need to be correctly disposed to receive forgiveness. This means we must have true sorrow for our sins, confess all mortal sins in kind and number and have a firm purpose of amendment.

St Benedict used to say: 

My only merit is the mercy of the Lord.  

Bartimeus noticed Jesus passing by, Jesus also passes by you in the Eucharist. He is our greatest Friend and is a prisoner of love in every Tabernacle. Let’s make prayer our priority, make Mass central to our lives, try to do Eucharistic Adoration, pray the Rosary,  serve God in our neighbour and never neglect spiritual reading. The Book of Heaven and Hours of the Passion in addition to the Scriptures provide great spiritual nourishment and will strengthen our faith. Praise be Jesus, King of Divine Mercy!