Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas
Mark CHAP. 10
10:46–52
46. And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimæus, the son of Timæus, sat by the highway side begging.
47. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
48. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
49. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
50. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
51. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
52. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
JEROME. The name of the city agrees with the approaching Passion of our Lord; for it is said, And they came to Jericho. Jericho means moon or anathema; but the failing of the flesh of Christ is the preparation of the heavenly Jerusalem. It goes on: And as he went out of Jericho with his disciples, and a great number of people, blind Bartimæus, the son of Timæus, sat by the wayside begging.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Matthew says, that there were two blind men sitting by the wayside, who cried to the Lord, and received their sight; but Luke relates that one blind man was enlightened by Him, with a like order of circumstances, as He was going into Jericho; where no one, at least no wise man, will suppose that the Evangelists wrote things contrary to one another, but that one wrote more fully, what another has left out. We must therefore understand that one of them was the more important, which appears from this circumstance, that Mark has related his name and the name of his father.
AUGUSTINE. (de Con. Evan. ii. 65) It is for this reason that Mark wished to relate his case alone, because his receiving his sight had gained for the miracle a fame, illustrious in proportion to the extent of the knowledge of his affliction. But although Luke relates a miracle done entirely in the same way, nevertheless we must understand that a similar miracle was wrought on another blind man, and a similar method of the same miracle. It goes on: And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy upon me.
PSEUDO-CHRYSOSTOM. (Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) The blind man calls the Lord, the Son of David, hearing the way in which the passing multitude praised Him, and feeling sure that the expectation of the prophets was fulfilled. There follows: And many charged him that he should hold his peace.t
ORIGEN. (in Matt. tom. xvi. 13) As if he said, Those who were foremost in believing rebuked him when he cried, Thou Son of David, that he might hold his peace, and cease to call Him by a contemptible name, when he ought to say, Son of God, have pity upon me. He however did not cease; wherefore it goes on: But he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy upon me; and the Lord heard his cry; wherefore there follows: And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. But observe, that the blind man, of whom Luke speaks, is inferior to this one; for neither did Jesus call him, nor order him to be called, but He commanded him to be brought to Him, as though unable to come by himself; but this blind man by the command of our Lord is called to Him. Wherefore it goes on: And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise, he calleth thee; but he casting away his garment, comes to Him. It goes on: And he casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. Perchance, the garment of the blind man means the veil of blindness and poverty, with which he was surrounded, which he cast away and came to Jesus; and the Lord questions him, as he is approaching. Wherefore there follows: And Jesus answered and said unto him, What will thou that I should do unto thee.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Could He who was able to restore sight be ignorant of what the blind man wanted? His reason then for asking is that prayer may be made to Him; He puts the question, to stir up the blind man’s heart to pray.
CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. in Matt. 66) Or He asks, lest men should think that what He granted the man was not what he wanted. For it was His practice to make the good disposition of those who were to be cured known to all men, and then to apply the remedy, in order to stir up others to emulation, and to shew that he who was to be cured was worthy to obtain the grace. It goes on: The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
BEDE. For the blind man looks down upon every gift except light, because, whatever a blind man may possess, without light he cannot see what he possesses.
PSEUDO-JEROME. But Jesus, considering his ready will, rewards him with the fulfilment of his desire.
ORIGEN. (ubi sup.) Again, it is more worthy to say Rabboni, or, as it is in other places, Master, than to say Son of David; wherefore He gives him health, not on his saying, Son of David, but when he said Rabboni. Wherefore there follows: And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed him in the way.
THEOPHYLACT. The mind of the blind man is grateful, for when he was made whole, he did not leave Jesus, but followed Him.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) In a mystical sense, however, Jericho, which means the moon, points out the waning of our fleeting race. The Lord restored sight to the blind man, when drawing near to Jericho, because coming in the flesh and drawing near to His Passion, He brought many to the faith; for it was not in the first years of His Incarnation, but in the few years before He suffered, that He shewed the mystery of the Word to the world.
PSEUDO-JEROME. But the blindness in part, brought upon the Jews, will in the end be enlightened when He sends unto them the Prophet Elias. (Rom. 11:25)
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Now in that on approaching Jericho, He restored sight to one man, and on quitting it to two, He intimated, that before His Passion He preached only to one nation, the Jews, but after His resurrection and ascension, through His Apostles He opened the mysteries both of His Divinity and His Humanity to Jews and Gentiles. Mark indeed, in writing that one received his sight, refers to the saving of the Gentiles, that the figure might agree with the salvation of those, whom he instructed in the faith; but Matthew, who wrote his Gospel to the faithful among the Jews, because it was also to reach the knowledge of the Gentiles, fitly says that two received their sight, that He might teach us that the grace of faith belonged to each people. Therefore, as the Lord was departing with His disciples and a great multitude from Jericho, the blind man was sitting, begging by the way-side; that is, when the Lord ascended into heaven, and many of the faithful followed Him, yea when all the elect from the beginning of the world entered together with Him the gate of heaven,u, presently the Gentile people began to have hope of its own illumination; for it now sits begging by the wayside, because it has not entered upon and reached the path of truth.
PSEUDO-JEROME. The people of the Jews also, because it kept the Scriptures and did not fulfil them, begs and starves by the wayside; but he cries out, Son of David, have mercy upon me, because the Jewish people is enlightened by the merits of the Prophets. Many rebuke him that he may hold his peace, that is, sins and devils restrain the cry of the poor; and he cried the more, because when the battle waxes great, hands are to be lifted up with crying to the Rock of help, that is, Jesus of Nazareth.
BEDE. Again, the people of the Gentiles, having heard of the fame of the name of Christ, sought to be made a partaker of Him, but many spoke against Him, first the Jews, then also the Gentiles, lest the world which was to be enlightened should call upon Christ. The fury of those who attacked Him, however, could not deprive of salvation those who were fore-ordained to life. And He heard the blind man’s cry as He was passing, but stood when He restored his sight, because by His Humanity He pitied him, who by the power of His Divinity has driven away the darkness from our mind; for in that Jesus was born and suffered for our sakes, He as it were passed by, because this action is temporal; but when God is said to stand, it means, that, Himself without change, He sets in order all changeable things. But the Lord calls the blind man, who cries to Him, when He sends the word of faith to the people of the Gentiles by preachers; and they call on the blind man to be of good cheer and to rise, and bid him come to the Lord, when by preaching to the simple, they bid them have hope of salvation, and rise from the sloth of vice, and gird themselves for a life of virtue. Again, he throws away his garment and leaps, who, throwing aside the bands of the world, with unencumbered pace hastens to the Giver of eternal light.
PSEUDO-JEROME. Again, the Jewish people comes leaping, stripped of the old man, as a hart leaping on the mountains, that is, laying aside sloth, it meditates on Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles on high, and raises itself to heights of holiness. How consistent also is the order of salvation. First we heard by the Prophets, then we cry aloud by faith, next we are called by Apostles, we rise up by penitence, we are stripped of our old garment by baptism, and of our choice we are questioned. Again, the blind man when asked requires, that he may see the will of the Lord.
BEDE. (ubi sup.) Therefore let us also imitate him, let us not seek for riches, earthly goods, or honours from the Lord, but for that Light, which we alone with the Angels can see, the way to which is faith; wherefore also Christ answers to the blind man, Thy faith hath saved thee. But he sees and follows who works what his understanding tells him is good; for he follows Jesus, who understands and executes what is good, who imitates Him, who had no wish to prosper in this world, and bore reproach and derision. And because we have fallen from inward joy, by delight in the things of the body, He shews us what bitter feelings the return thither will cost us.
THEOPHYLACT. Further, it says that he followed the Lord in the way, that is, in this life, because after it all are excluded who follow Him not here, by working His commandments.
PSEUDO-JEROME. Or, this is the way of which He said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This is the narrow way, which leads to the heights of Jerusalem, and Bethany, to the mount of Olives, which is the mount of light and consolation.
Second Reading:From: Hebrews 5:1-6
Christ Has Been Made High Priest by God the Father
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[1] For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. [2] He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. [3] Because of this he is bound to offer sacrifice for his own sins as well as for those of the people. [4] And one does not take the honor upon himself, but he is called by God, just as Aaron was.
[5] So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, "Thou art my Son, today I have begotten thee"; [6] as he says also in another place, "Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek."
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Commentary:
1-10. The central theme of the epistle, broached in 2:17 and taken up again in 4:14-15, is discussed from here up to the start of chapter 10--the theme of Christ as high priest, the high priest who really can free us from all sin. In fact, Christ is the only perfect Priest: other priests--in both natural religions and the Jewish religion--are only prefigurements of Christ. The first thing to be emphasized, because the writer is addressing people of Jewish background, is that Christ's priesthood is on a higher plane than that of the priests of the Old Law. However, the argument applies not only to the priesthood of Aaron, to whose family all Israelite priests belonged, but also, indirectly, to all forms of priesthood before Christ. But there is a basic difference, in that whereas other priests were chosen by men, Aaron was chosen by God. Sacred Scripture introduces him as Moses' brother (cf. Ex 6:20), acting as his interpreter to Pharaoh (because Moses was "slow of speech": Ex 4:10; cf. 7:1-2) and joining him to lead the people out of Egypt (cf. Ex 4:27-30). After the Israelites left Egypt, God himself instituted the priesthood of Aaron to minister and carry out divine worship at the tabernacle and later at the temple in Jerusalem (cf. Ex 28:1-5).
Divine intervention, therefore, brought to a close the period when sacrifice was offered by the head of the family or the chief of the tribe and when no specific calling or external ordination rite was connected with priesthood. Thus, for example, in the Book of Genesis we read that Cain, and Abel, themselves offered sacrifices (cf. Gen 4:35), as did Noah after coming safely through the flood (cf. Gen 8:20); and the patriarchs often offered sacrifices to God in adoration or thanksgiving or to renew their Covenant--for example, Abraham (cf. Gen 12:8; 15:8-17; 22:1-13) and Jacob (cf. Gen 26:25; 33:20), etc.
Although for a considerable time after the institution of the Aaron priesthood, sacrifices continued to be offered also by private individuals--for example, in the period of the Judges, the sacrifice of Gideon (Judg 6: 18,25-26) or that of Samson's parents (Judg 13:15-20)-- gradually the convictions grew that to be a priest a person had to have a specific vocation, one which was not given to anyone outside males of the line of Aaron (cf. Judg 17:7-13), whom God had chosen from out of all the people of Israel, identifying him by the sign of his rod sprouting buds (Num 17:16-24). God himself meted out severe punishment to Korah and his sons when they tried to set themselves up as rivals of Aaron: they were devoured by fire from heaven (cf. Num 16); and it was specified in Mosaic legislation time and time again that only the sons of Aaron could act as priests (cf. Num 3:10; 17:5; 18:7). This priesthood offered the sacrifices of Mosaic worship--the burnt offerings, cereal offerings, sin offerings and peace offerings (cf. Lev 6). To the descendants of Aaron, assisted by the Levites, was entrusted also the care of the tabernacle and the protection of the ark of the Covenant. They received their ministry and had it confirmed by the offering of sacrifice and by anointing of the man's head and hands with oil (Ex 29; Lev 8-9; Num 3:3). For all these reasons Hebrew priests were honored and revered by the people and regarded (not without reason, because God had ordained them) as on a much higher plane than other priests particularly those of the peoples of Canaan, the priests of Baal, for example. In Christ's time the high priest was the highest religious authority in Israel; his words were regarded as oracular statements, and his decisions could have important political repercussions.
However, Christ came with the very purpose of taking this ancient institution and transforming it into a new, eternal priesthood. Every Christian priest is, as it were, Christ's instrument or an extension of his sacred humanity. Christian priests do not act in their own name, nor are they mere representatives of the people: they act in the name of God. "Here we have the priest's identity: he is direct and daily instrument of the saving grace which Christ has won for us" ([St] J. Escriva, "In Love with the Church", 39). It is really Christ who is acting through them by means of their words, gestures etc. All of this means that Christian priesthood cannot be separated from the eternal priesthood of Christ. This extension of God's providence (in the form of the Old Testament priesthood and the priesthood instituted by Christ in the New Testament and the mission entrusted to New Testament priests) should lead us to love and honor the priesthood irrespective of the human defects and shortcomings of these ministers of God: "To love God and not venerate his Priests...is not possible" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 74).
1a. These words provide a very good short definition of what every priest is.
"The office proper to a priest", St Thomas Aquinas points out, "is to be a mediator between God and the people, inasmuch as he bestows divine things on the people (he is called "sacerdos" (priest), which means 'a giver of sacred things', "sacra dans" [...]), and again inasmuch as he offers the people's prayer to God and in some way makes satisfaction to God for their sins" ("Summa Theologiae", III, q.22, a.1).
In this passage of the letter we can detect an echo of the description of Aaron in the Book of Sirach: "He chose him out of all the living to offer sacrifice to the Lord, incense and a pleasing odor as a memorial portion, to make atonement for the people" (Sir 45:16). Four elements characterize the office of the high priest (the text speaks of the "high" priest in the strict sense, but it is applicable to all priests --1) his special dignity, because although he is a man he has been specially chosen by God; 2) the purpose of his mission, which is the good of mankind ("to act on behalf of men"); 3) the "material" side of his office, that is, public divine worship; 4) the specific acts he must perform, the offering of sacrifice at appropriate times.
In the specific case of priesthood instituted by God--such as that of Aaron or the new priesthood instituted by Christ--the calling ("taken" or "chosen" from among men) is not simply an influence the person feels interiorly, or a desire to be a priest: its divine origin is confirmed by nomination by the proper authority, and by official consecration.
1b. A priest is "chosen from among men", that is, he should possess a human nature. This is a further sign of God's mercy: to bring about our salvation he uses someone accessible to us, one who shares our human condition, "so that man might have someone like himself to have recourse to" (St Thomas, "Commentary on Heb, ad loc."). These words also indicate the extent of God's kindness because they remind us that the divine Redeemer not only offered himself and made satisfaction for the sins of all, but desired that "the priestly life which the divine Redeemer had begun in his mortal body by his prayers and sacrifice (should not cease). He willed it to continue unceasingly through the ages in his mystical body, which is the Church; and therefore he instituted a visible priesthood to offer everywhere a clean oblation (Mal 1:11), so that all men all over the world, being diverted from sin, might serve God conscientiously, and of their own free will" (Pius XII, "Mediator Dei", 1).
He is "chosen from among men" also in the sense that he is given special consecration which is some way marks him off from the rest of the people of God. St John Chrysostom comments, recalling Jesus triple question to Peter after the Resurrection (cf. Jn 21:15-17): "When he asked Peter if he loved him, he did not do so because he needed to know whether his disciple loved him, but because he wanted to show how great his own love was; thus, when he says, 'Who then is the faithful and prudent servant', he does not say this because he does not know the answer, but in order to show us how unique and wonderful an honor it is, as can be deduced from the rewards: 'he will place him over all his goods.' And he concludes that the priest ought to be outstanding in holiness ("De Sacerdotio", II, 1-2).
"The priests of the New Testament", Vatican II reminds us, "are, by their vocation to ordination, set apart in some way in the midst of the people of God, but this is not in order that they should be separated from that people or from anyone, but that they should be completely consecrated to the task for which God chose them" ("Presbyterorum Ordinis", 3). This calling, then, constitutes a distinction but not a separation because it is indissolubly linked to a specific mission: a priest is "chosen from among men" but for the purpose of acting "on behalf of men in relation to God". In this delicate balance between divine call and spiritual mission to men lies the essence of priesthood. Christians, therefore, should never view a priest as "just another person". "They want to find in the priest the virtues appropriate to any Christian and even any upright man--understanding, justice, commitment to work (priestly work, in this case), charity, good manners, social refinement. But the faithful also want to be able to recognize clearly the priestly character: they expect the priest to pray, not to refuse to administer the sacraments; they expect him to be open to everyone and not set himself up to take charge of people or become an aggressive leader of human factions, of whatever shade (cf. "Presbyterorum Ordinis", 6). They expect him to bring love and devotion to the celebration of Mass, to sit in the confessional, to console the sick and the troubled; to teach sound doctrine to children and adults, to preach the Word of God and no mere human science which--no matter how well he may know it--is not the knowledge that saves and brings eternal life; they expect him to give counsel and be charitable to those in need" (St J. Escriva, "In Love with the Church", 42).
Priests "could not be the servants of Christ unless they were witnesses and dispensers of a life other than that of this earth. On the other hand, they would be powerless to serve men if they remained aloof from their life and circumstances" ("Presbyterorum Ordinis", 3). In this connection, Pope John Paul II has made the following appeal: "Yes, you are chosen from among men, given to Christ by the Father, to be in the world, "in the heart of society". You are appointed to act on behalf of men (Heb 5:1). The priesthood is the sacrament whereby the Church is to be seen as the society of the people of God; it is the 'social' sacrament. Priests should 'convoke' each of the communities of the people of God, around them but not for themselves--for Christ!" ("Homily at an Ordination of Priests", 15 June 1980).
The specific function of the priest has, then, been clearly identified: he is concerned about his brethren but he is not here to solve temporal problems; his role is only "in relation to God". "Christian ministerial priesthood is different from any other priesthood in that it is not an office to which someone is appointed by others to intercede with God on their behalf; it is a mission to which a man is called by God (Heb 5:1-10; 7:24; 9: 11-28) to be towards others a living sign of the presence of Christ, the only Mediator (1 Tim 2:5), Head and Shepherd of his people [...]. In other words, Christian priesthood is essentially (this is the only possible way it can be understood) an eminently sacred mission, both in its origin (Christ) and in its content (the divine mystery) and by the very manner in which it is conferred (a sacrament)" (A. del Portillo, "On Priesthood", pp. 59f).
2-3. From the moral qualities a priest needs, these verses single out mercy and compassion, which lead him, on the one hand, to be gentle to sinners and, at the same time, to desire to make personal reparation for their sins. The Latin translation of v. 2a puts the emphasis on the fact that the priest shares in suffering for sin: he can "suffer along with" ("aeque condolere") but in just measure on seeing those who go astray, and, imitating Christ, he can himself perform some of the penance those sinners should be doing. The original word translated here as "deal gently" recalls the profound, but serene, sorrow which Abraham felt when Sarah died (cf. Gen 23:2) and at the same time it alludes to the need for forbearance, generosity and understanding: a priest must be a person who, while rejecting sin, is understanding to the sinner and conscious that it may take him time to mend his ways. He is also inclined to put the sinner's intentions in the best light (cf. Gal 6:1): people do not always sin deliberately; they can sin out of ignorance (that is, not realizing the gravity of their actions) and, more often than not, out of weakness.
The Old Testament makes a clear distinction between sin committed unwittingly (cf. Lev 4:2-27; Num 14:24, 27-29) and sins of rebelliousness (cf. Num 15:22-31; Deut 17:12). Further on (cf. Heb 6:4-6; 10:26-27; 12:17), the letter will again refer to the gravity of sins committed out of malice. Here, however, it is referring to sin, whether grave or not, committed out of weakness. "Ignorant" and "wayward" are almost synonymous, for a person who sins out of ignorance is described in Hebrews by a word which means "he who goes astray, he who does not know the way". The basic reason why a priest should be understanding and compassionate is his awareness of his own weakness. Thus, the Church puts these words on his lips in Eucharistic Prayer I: "'nobis quoque peccatoribus'--for ourselves, too, sinners" (cf. Wis 9:5-6). A priest is compassionate and understanding because "he himself is beset with weakness". The word translated as "beset" contains the idea of surrounded or covered by or wrapped as if in a cloak. Pope Pius XI wrote: "When we see a man exercising this faculty (of forgiving sins), we cannot but repeat (not out of pharisaical scandal, but with reverent amazement) those words, 'Who is this, who even forgives sins?' (Lk 7:49). It is the Man-God, who had and has 'authority on earth to forgive sins' (Lk 5:24), and has chosen to communicate it to his priests, and thereby with the generosity of divine mercy to meet the human conscience's need of purification. Hence the great consolation the guilty man receives who experiences remorse and contritely hears the priest tell him in God's name, 'I absolve you from your sins.' The fact that he hears this said by someone who himself will need to ask another priest to speak the same words to him, does not debase God's merciful gift: it enhances it, for the hand of God who works this wonder is seen (as operating) by means of a frail creature" (Pius XII, "Ad Catholici Sacerdotii").
3. Everyone, including the priest, is a sinner. In the Old Testament rites for the Day of Atonement ("Yom Kippur"), the high priest, before entering the Holy of Holies, offered a sin-offering for his own sins (cf. Lev 16:3, 6, 11; Heb 9:6-14); so too the priests of the New Testament have a duty to be holy, to reject sin, to ask for forgiveness of their own sins, and to intercede for sinners.
The model the priest should always have before him is Jesus Christ, the eternal high priest. "The main motive force actuating a priest should be the determination to attain the closest union with the divine Redeemer [...]. He should continually keep Christ before his eyes. Christ's commands, actions and example he should follow most assiduously, in the conviction that it is not enough for him to submit to the duties by which the faithful are bound, but that he must at a daily increasing pace pursue the perfection of life which the high dignity of a priest demands" (Pius XII, "Menti Nostrae", 7). But, one might object, Christ never had any defect, never sinned, because his human nature was perfect and totally holy: is he not therefore too perfect a model for men who when it comes down to it are sinners? The answer is, No, not at all, for he himself said, "I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you" (Jn 13:15). Besides, when the text (v. 2) refers to "weakness" this may refer to two things the weakness of human nature (of man as creature), and the imperfection resulting from his faults and his passions. The former kind of defect is one Christ shares with us; the second is one he does not. For this very reason, in the case of the priest, consciousness of his sins, plus his conviction that he has been called by Christ, moves him to be very committed to his apostolic ministry of reconciliation and penance; and in the first instance priests perform this ministry for one another. "Priests, who are consecrated by the anointing of the Holy Spirit and sent by Christ, mortify the works of the flesh in themselves and dedicate themselves completely to the service of people" (Vatican II, "Presbyterorum Ordinis", 12). As Pope John Paul II has stressed, "the priest's celebration of the Eucharist and administration of the other sacraments, his pastoral zeal, his relationship with the faithful, his communion with this brother priests, his collaboration with his bishop, his life of prayer--in a word, the whole of his priestly existence--suffers an inexorable decline if by negligence or for some other reason he fails to receive the sacrament of Penance at regular intervals and in a spirit of genuine faith and devotion. If a priest were no longer to go to confession or properly confess his sins, his priestly being and his priestly action would feel the effect of this very soon, and it would also be noticed by the community of which he was the pastor.
"But I also add that even in order to be a good and effective minister of Penance the priest needs to have recourse to the source of grace and holiness present in this sacrament. We priests, on the basis of our personal experience, can certainly say that, the more careful we are to receive the sacrament of Penance and to approach it frequently and with good dispositions, the better we fulfill our own ministry as confessors and ensure that our penitents benefit from it. And on the other hand this ministry would lose much of its effectiveness if in some way we were to stop being good penitents. Such is the internal logic of this great sacrament. It invites all of us priests of Christ to pay renewed attention to our personal confession" ("Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia", 31).
What the Pope says here ultimately stems from the fact that " as ministers of the sacred mysteries, especially in the sacrifice of the Mass, priests act in a special way in the person of Christ who gave himself as a victim to sanctify men" ("Presbyterorum Ordinis", 13).
In this way, "Christ the shepherd is present in the priest so as continually to actualize the universal call to conversion and repentance which prepares for the coming of the Kingdom of heaven (cf. Mt 4:17). He is present in order to make men understand that forgiveness of sins, the reconciliation of the soul and God, cannot be the outcome of a monologue, no matter how keen a person's capacity for reflection and self-criticism. He reminds us that no one, alone, can calm his own conscience; that the contrite heart must submit its sins to the Church-institution, to the man-priest, who in the sacrament of Penance is a permanent objective witness to the radical need which fallen humanity has of the man-God, the only Just One, the only Justifier" (A. del Portillo, "On Priesthood", p. 62).
Gospel Reading: From: Mark 10:46-52
The Blind Man of Jericho
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[46] And they (Jesus and His disciples) came to Jericho; and as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. [47] And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!: [48] And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" [49] And Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart; rise, He is calling you." [50] And throwing off his mantle he sprang up and came to Jesus. [51] And Jesus said to him, "What do you want Me to do for you?" And the blind man said to Him, "Master, let me receive my sight." [52] And Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your faith has made you well." And immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
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Commentary:
46-52. "Hearing the commotion the crowd was making, the blind man asks, `What is happening?' They told him, `It is Jesus of Nazareth.' At this his soul was so fired with faith in Christ that he cried out, `Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!'
"Don't you feel the same urge to cry out? You who are also waiting at the side of the way, of this highway of life that is so very short? You who need more light, you who need more grace to make up your mind to seek holiness? Don't you feel an urgent need to cry out, `Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me'? What a beautiful aspiration for you to repeat again and again!...
"`Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.' As people have done to you, when you sensed that Jesus was passing your way. Your heart beat faster and you too began to cry out, prompted by an intimate longing. Then your friends, the need to do the done thing, the easy life, your surroundings, all conspired to tell you: `Keep quiet, don't cry out. Who are you to be calling Jesus? Don't bother Him.'
"But poor Bartimaeus would not listen to them. He cried out all the more: `Son of David, have mercy on me.' Our Lord, who had heard him right from the beginning, let him persevere in his prayer. He does the same with you. Jesus hears our cries from the very first, but he waits. He wants us to be convinced that we need Him. He wants us to beseech Him, to persist, like the blind man waiting by the road from Jericho. `Let us imitate him. Even if God does not immediately give us what we ask, even if many people try to put us off our prayers, let us still go on praying' (St. John Chrysostom, "Hom. on St. Matthew", 66).
"`And Jesus stopped, and told them to call Him.' Some of the better people in the crowd turned to the blind man and said, `Take heart; rise, He is calling you.' Here you have the Christian vocation! But God does not call only once. Bear in mind that our Lord is seeking us at every moment: get up, He tells us, put aside your indolence, your easy life, your petty selfishness, your silly little problems. Get up from the ground, where you are lying prostrate and shapeless. Acquire height, weight and volume, and a supernatural outlook.
"And throwing off his mantle the man sprang up and came to Jesus. He threw off his mantle! I don't know if you have ever lived through a war, but many years ago I had occasion to visit a battlefield shortly after an engagement. There strewn all over the ground, were greatcoats, water bottles, haversacks stuffed with family souvenirs, letters, photographs of loved ones...which belonged, moreover, not to the vanquished but to the victors! All these items had become superfluous in the bid to race forward and leap over the enemy defenses. Just as happened to Bartimaeus, as he raced towards Christ.
"Never forget that Christ cannot be reached without sacrifice. We have to get rid of everything that gets in the way--greatcoat, haversack, water bottle. You have to do the same in this battle for the glory of God, in this struggle of love and peace by which we are trying to spread Christ's Kingdom. In order to serve the Church, the Pope and all souls, you must be ready to give up everything superfluous....
"And now begins a dialogue with God, a marvelous dialogue that moves us and sets our hearts on fire, for you and I are now Bartimaeus. Christ, who is God, begins to speak and asks, `Quid tibi vis faciam?' `What do you want Me to do for you?' The blind man answers. `Lord, that I may see.' How utterly logical! How about yourself, can you really see? Haven't you too experienced at times what happened to the blind man of Jericho? I can never forget how, when meditating on this passage many years back, and realizing that Jesus was expecting something of me, though I myself did not know what it was, I made up my own aspirations: `Lord, what is it You want! What are You asking of me'? I had a feeling that He wanted me to take on something new and the cry, `Rabboni, ut videam', `Master, that I may see,' moved me to beseech Christ again and again, `Lord, whatever it is that You wish, let it be done.'
"Pray with me now to our Lord: `doce me facere voluntatem tuam, quia Deus meus es tu" (Psalm 142:10) (`teach me to do Thy will, for You art my God'). In short, our lips should express a true desire on our part to correspond effectively to our Creator's promptings, striving to follow out His plans with unshakeable faith, being fully convinced that He cannot fail us....
"But let us go back to the scene outside Jericho. It is now to you that Christ is speaking. He asks you, `What do you want Me to do for you?' `Master, let me receive my sight.' Then Jesus answers, `Go your way. Your faith has made you well.' And immediately he received his sight and followed Him on His way." Following Jesus on His way. You have understood what our Lord was asking to from you and you have decided to accompany Him on His way. You are trying to walk in His footsteps, to clothe yourself in Christ's clothing, to be Christ Himself: well, your faith, your faith in the light our Lord is giving you, must be both operative and full of sacrifice. Don't fool yourself. Don't think you are going to find new ways. The faith He demands of us is as I have said. We must keep in step with Him, working generously and at the same time uprooting and getting rid of everything that gets in the way" (St J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 195-198).
