Homily for Thursday, 28 May 2015– Ferial

Thursday of the 8th week in Ordinary Time

Readings of the day: Sirach 42:15-25; Psalm 33:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; Mark 10:46-52

Have you ever, for a few moments, delighted in God’s creation? Have you marveled at the immensity of the universe or been amazed at the diversity and intricacy of the smallest creatures we know?

Sirach understands something of God’s wisdom; God’s glory when he sees God’s creation. Our first reading, from Sirach, is a hymn of praise for the beauty of God’s creation; an appreciation of the wisdom and greatness of the Creator. “Now will I recall God’s works,” Sirach begins, “At God’s word were his works brought into being; they do his will as he has ordained for them.”

But soon Sirach is at a loss to praise God for God’s creation because it is so splendid. “Even God’s holy ones must fail in recounting the wonders of the LORD,” Sirach acknowledges! Our creator God “plumbs the depths and penetrates the heart.” God lacks “no understanding”; no wisdom. And so we, like Sirach, are reduced to awe and wonder. Sirach asks, “Can one ever see enough of [the] splendor” of God’s creation? Even from the small amount of God’s creation that we see, can we not understand something of the greatness of God by sensing God’s creation?

And yet some do not easily experience the greatness of God’s creation. This is the experience of the blind Bartimaeus in our Gospel reading today from Mark. We cannot know the kind of “blindness” that afflicted Bartimaeus, whether it was literal inability to see or some other physical illness, or whether he was blinded spiritually; blinded by sin. Whatever Bartimaeus’ kind of blindness, it does not stop him. Bartimaeus has the faith and confidence to approach Jesus and ask him: “Master, I want to see.”

The blind Bartimaeus never despairs of God’s healing; of the mercy of the same God who created the universe and everything in it and sustains this creation. Bartimaeus trusts that Jesus will restore his sight so that he can sense the wonders of God’s creation more fully and give thanks to them by a life of following Jesus.

“Master, I want to see.” What if this were all we wanted of God, so to give praise to God for God’s creation? We trust in God, I am confident. We trust and show awe and reverence to our Creator God; to our God of mercy especially when our sins and failings are keeping us from experiencing God’s goodness even more deeply. We are here because we trust in God who gives himself in our Eucharist.

But what if we were to purify this trust; this desire to “see” and experience God, even more? What if, by God’s grace, we did not complain as much about small afflictions (I can be bad for this)? What if our prayer were more like that of the blind Bartimaeus: “Master, I want to see.”

Master, I want to give thanks more and more for the splendor of your creation. Master, for the times I have sinned I am sorry; “I want to” experience your mercy; I never despair of your mercy. I know that, this side of eternal life, we will never fully understand your greatness and the greatness of creation. But let us experience more of it to give you fitting praise. “Master, I want to see.”