DAILY- HOMILY

OCTOBER 25, 2009
30TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – B

JEREMIAH 31:7-9
Thus says the LORD: Shout with joy for Jacob, exult at the head of the
nations; proclaim your praise and say: The LORD has delivered his
people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them back from the
land of the north; I will gather them from the ends of the world, with
the blind and the lame in their midst, the mothers and those with
child; they shall return as an immense throng. They departed in tears,
but I will console them and guide them; I will lead them to brooks of
water, on a level road, so that none shall stumble. For I am a father
to Israel, Ephraim is my first-born.

HEBREWS 5:1-6
Brothers and sisters: Every high priest is taken from among men and
made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices
for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring,
for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make
sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this
honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In
the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high
priest, but rather the one who said to him: You are my son: this day I
have begotten you; just as he says in another place: You are a priest
forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

MARK 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside
begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out
and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." And many rebuked him,
telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, "Son
of David, have pity on me." Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So
they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take courage; get up, Jesus
is calling you." He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to
Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for
you?" The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see." Jesus
told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he
received his sight and followed him on the way.

REFLECTION
In last week's Gospel, James and John came and said to Jesus: "We want
you to do for us whatever we ask of you." In response, Jesus uttered:
"What do you wish me to do for you?" They ask him that they be placed
in positions of power even after they were willing to be one with
Jesus in all that he had to undergo. Yet Jesus eventually rejects
their plea. Instead, he tells them what it truly means to be a
disciple, that is, a servant of all.

Today's Gospel is some sort of repetition in that we have Bartimaeus,
a blind man who addresses Jesus: "Son of David, have pity on me." And
when he was told to be quiet, he all the more shouted "Son of David,
have pity on me." Having heard him, Jesus tells him "What do you want
me to do for you." He then responds: "I want to see." Immediately, his
plea was granted.

These two instances are great examples of the perennial questions of
whether God responds to our prayers. One is granted while the other is
rejected. Why is this so? One can only conjecture why such results
happened.

One significant detail though that we may pay attention is the detail
that prior to Jesus' reply, Bartimaeus threw aside his cloak. This is
significant in that it suggests a total trust and confidence on the
part of Bartimaeus that Jesus will do something for him. A cloak was
his security blanket and all that he had especially in the evening
when it becomes cold and he needs to keep himself warm and probably
also to shield him from dust during the day. But with Jesus, he
anticipates something more. In his act of letting go, he was able to
put himself in the best secured condition. With Jesus, everything else
becomes secondary. Without such attachments, he becomes totally free
to follow his Master.

It might be good today to imagine ourselves conversing with Jesus and
hearing him tell us in a very personal way: "What do you want me to do
for you?" Is there anything immediate and urgent that we would want
our Lord to give us today? Or is there anything that we would want the
Lord to bestow on someone we know is in dire need?

How do we, on our part, show evidence of our total trust in Jesus just
like Bartimaeus did? What are we willing to let go as indication that
we are confident that Jesus will grant our requests and desires?

And if we cannot think of anything to seek from Jesus, we could just
probably imbibe the prayer or request of Bartimaeus. We can likewise
beg the Lord to make us see as we know very well that we are enmeshed
in so many issues and conflicts due to our lack of seeing or
understanding. We can ask the Lord to grant us the wisdom to be able
to discern well in that we are able to see what God, in turn, asks
from us.

The story does not end with gratitude and joy on the part of
Bartimaeus who received his requested favor from God. Now, it was time
to respond. In the Gospel passage, it says that he follows Jesus.
Bartimaeus treks the path of Jesus. Are we like that whenever we
receive favors from our Lord? Is there any desire or resolve to follow
Jesus? Or is Jesus simply a seasonal friend in that we only approach
him when we have something to ask from him?

We end with a prayer: "Look, here I am, with all that I am; You
understand who I am, more than I do myself. Make me as you want me to
be I long for your presence of love, of trust. Give me all that I need
to live, through you."

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the strength and healing of:
- Luz Bagaipo Arquiza
- Rex
- Francis Torres
- Mon Torres
- Ton, Nicole, & Joey Torres
- Monsignor John Finnegan, Fr. Brad Helman, Fr. John Kahler
- Ely Lara
- Andrew Huang
- Jose Valera
- Lisa
- Brenda Domingo-Solis
… for the personal intentions of
- Jenny
- Med Villanueva
- Josheil Dapo
- Mycel and Mark
- Julie Manzon
- Mary Wong, Catherine and Koo Chay
… for the victims of natural disasters
… for the eternal repose of the soul of Pacita Religioso de Castro.
Eternal rest grant unto her and may perpetual light shine upon her.
May she and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for the healing and peace of all families
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Betty Limpe Ngo
- Birthday: Crisanto Ebarvia
- Birthday: Edna Ebarvia
- In Memoriam (+): Josefina Cudala Bates
… for world peace and reconciliation.

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

**************************************************
Parish Priests' e-mail:
Fr. J. Cesar R. Marin, S. J. parishpriest@marythequeen.org

Assistant Parish Priests' e-mails:
Fr. R. Hart, S. J. rodneyhart@marythequeen.org
Fr. Thomas O'Gorman, S. J. thogorman@marythequeen.org
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