Thursday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Seeing With Eyes Of Faith
Liturgical Cycle: A | Lectionary Cycle: II
Introduction
Reborn in baptism, we have become living stones of Christ as God’s temple and his holy people, who make God’s name known and offer God a sacrifice acceptable to God.
Jesus cures a blind man. Not only is his eyesight restored, but he also begins to see, by faith, who Jesus is. Note that the crowd first try to silence him, but his faith is unstoppable and cannot be silenced.
Opening Prayer
Our living God,
your are very near to us in our joys and pains.
Give us eyes of faith and love to see
the mission you have given us in life
and the grace and courage to carry it out.
Make us also clear-sighted enough to see
the needs of people who cry out their misery
or suffer in silence,
that we may bring them your healing compassion
and lead them to you.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
First Reading
Like newborn babies, eagerly crave the pure spiritual milk that will help you grow and reach salvation,
for you tested the goodness of the Lord.
He is the living stone rejected by people but chosen by God and precious to him; draw near to him,
so that you, too, become living stones built into a spiritual temple, a holy community of priests offering spiritual sacrifices that please God through Jesus Christ.
You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation—a people owned by God—to proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
At one point, you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Christian Vocation and the Example of Christ
Beloved, while you are strangers and exiles, I urge you not to indulge in selfish passions that wage war on the soul.
Live a blameless life among the Gentiles; so, when they falsely accuse you of any wrong, they may see your good works and give glory to God on the day he comes to them.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (2c) Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
R. Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.
Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.
R. Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him;
bless his name.
R. Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.
The LORD is good:
his kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness, to all generations.
R. Come with joy into the presence of the Lord.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
whoever follows me will have the light of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Heals a Blind Man
They arrived in Jericho. As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.
When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, he began to call out:
“Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me!”
Many people scolded him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted even louder:
“Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Jesus stopped and said:
“Call him.”
So they called the blind man, saying:
“Take heart! Get up, he is calling you!”
He immediately threw aside his cloak, jumped up, and went to Jesus.
Then Jesus asked him:
“What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man said:
“Master, let me see again!”
And Jesus said to him:
“Go your way, your faith has made you well.”
Immediately, he could see, and he followed Jesus along the road.
Prayers of the Faithful
– Lord, see the eyes of children open to life; see the eyes full of hope of those who believe in your future and fill them with your light, we pray:
– Lord, see the eyes of those who suffer; see the lifeless eyes of those who are physically blind, we pray:
– Lord, see the eyes of those who fail to see others; see the eyes full of tears of those who mourn for those they loved, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Our living and loving God,
The whole world is a sign of you:
Your beauty is reflected in every flower
And each ray of the sun shines with your light.
Give each of us a grateful heart
that rejoices in simple things.
Give us new eyes to discover
in these signs of bread and wine
the love and the life of Jesus, your Son,
and give us faith to see how good it is
to be your people in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
God, our loving Father,
We have heard and seen your Son
and recognised him
in the breaking of bread.
Help us to see with his light
what is right and what is wrong in us.
Make us understand the deeper meaning
of suffering and pain.
And one day show us yourself as you are,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit, forever and ever.
Blessing
May God give to all of us eyes of faith and may he bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
Mark 10:46-52
By Rolnd J. Faley
Most people identify the priest as the “God person” in the neighbourhood; he represents human interests before God and offers counsel to humans about God. We may be a little surprised to realise that the First Letter of Peter refers to the Christian community as a “holy priesthood.” This means that all of us make up a priesthood, sacred to God. It means that all of us stand before God as intercessors on behalf of others, just as we bring God's teaching to our brothers and sisters. We proclaim by the glorious works of the One who has called us out of darkness into light. Like the blind Bartimaeus, we are called to follow the Lord on his way. The evil desires to which we are all prey should be channelled into conduits of good that we may inspire rather than degrade our neighbour. Our lives should give glory to God.
In terms of the liturgy, we are co-offerors of the Mass, together with the ordained priest, in bringing our lives and our lot before God. We should reflect more often on our priestly calling. In fact, we belong to two worlds: one from earth and one from above; and we have responsibilities in both.
The priesthood of the faithful
Our response to a request for prayers
Living in a God-like way
Dealing with carnal desire
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Mark 10:46-52
Opening our eyes to the needs of others
In Mark 10:46-52, we encounter the story of Bartimaeus, a blind beggar who cries out to Jesus for healing. Despite being rebuked by the crowd, Bartimaeus persists, and Jesus responds to his faith, restoring his sight. This passage highlights both the importance of faith and the power of persistence, even in the face of obstacles.
Pope Francis emphasises the need to listen to those on the margins, the “existential peripheries,” as he calls them. Bartimaeus represents the marginalised—voiceless, disregarded by society. Yet Jesus hears his cry. Pope Francis reminds us that the Church must be a place where the cries of the poor, the sick, and the forgotten are heard. His teachings, and more importantly, through what he does, through his gestures, the pope challenges us to go beyond our comfort zones and reach out to those in need, just as Jesus did with Bartimaeus.
In today’s world, we face many forms of blindness. Social injustice, environmental destruction, and spiritual complacency can cloud our vision. Like Bartimaeus, we must recognise our need for healing and have the courage to call out to Jesus. Pope Francis continually warns against the “globalisation of indifference” that dulls our compassion and allows us to ignore the suffering around us. We are called, like Bartimaeus, to cry out for mercy—not only for ourselves but for a world in need of transformation.
This Gospel passage invites us to deeper faith and action. Just as Bartimaeus received new sight and followed Jesus along the way, we are called to let Jesus open our eyes to the suffering and needs of others. With renewed vision, we can respond to the challenges of our time, working for justice, peace, and the healing of creation in line with Pope Francis’ vision for a more compassionate and engaged Church.
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Mark 10:46-52
Let us never despair
The Gospel passage recounts the cure of Bartimaeus, the blind man of Jericho. He heard that Jesus was passing by, understood that it was the opportunity of his life and acted swiftly.
Bartimaeus is not blind; he is only sightless. He sees better with his heart than many of those around him, because he has faith and cherishes hope. More than that, it is this interior vision of faith that also helps him to recover his external vision of things. “Your faith has made you well,” Jesus says to him.
There are some temptations for those who follow Jesus. The Gospel describes two of them in today’s passage. None of the disciples stopped at the cry of Bartimaeus on the road. They continued to walk and even tried to stop him from crying out. If Bartimaeus was blind, they were deaf: his problem was not their problem.
This is a temptation for us, too: when confronted with problems, we prefer to move away as if we did not know. Just like the disciples, although we are with Jesus, but we do not think like him and refuse to respond like him.
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; we expect everyone to respect our rhythm. Thus, we run the risk of becoming those “many” of the Gospel who lose patience and rebuke Bartimaeus. Just a short time before, they scolded the children (cf. 10:13), and now the blind beggar: whoever disturbs our schedule is excluded.
Bartimaeus represents people who experience the miseries of life and feel sunken, depressed, and alone. But, he teaches us a lesson in perseverance. Let us never despair. God’s compassion will never fail us.