Sunday, October 28, 2018

Jesus walks along our way – Mark 10:46-52

30th Sunday in OT, Year B; Holy Infant parish. A shorter than normal homily, as we had a presentation of the status of our building plans too.


The first time I visited Durham was just over three years ago. I was serving at Notre Dame then and me and another priest from my community had been assigned to make applications to doctoral programs during that year, so we’d be able eventually to serve as faculty members at one of our community’s universities. During ND’s Fall break, Fr. Mark and I did a kind of road trip, to check out various schools on the East coast that we might be interested in applying to. We went out to Yale, Boston College and then down to Duke, where I had a wonderful visit and became pretty convinced that this is where I really was called to do my doctorate. That, of course, led to all kinds of worry. Initially, would I get in? But just as importantly, was I sure I’d be able to thrive here as a priest, and as a vowed religious of the Congregation of Holy Cross, while I did these studies that I felt called to?


Well, on the drive back, I noticed something. As we were driving up through West Virginia and into Ohio (through those beautiful mountains that sing of God’s goodness), we passed three identical minivans, that seemed to be driving in caravan, that all had IN license plates, and that were filled with college-age looking kids. We realized that these were Notre Dame students returning from a Fall break service learning trip in Appalachia. There was something amazingly refreshing, maybe even healing, about realizing who were on the way with. To be reminded of the students for whose sake Fr. Mark and I were looking to become priest-professors, to be reminded of their zeal and their love for Christ revealed in the poor served, and to see them on the way with us. Remembering who we were on the way with made such a difference to our moods.


Our lives are lives of being on the way, the pilgrimage of sanctification, the journey home, just as Jeremiah prophesied. And Christ is with us on the way. And remembering who is with us on the way makes such a difference. Christ is not just the goal of our journey of life – though he certainly is that – he’s a constant companion too.

And at times, like Bartimaeus at the start of this story, our role, our next step, is to call out to him to help us, to heal us. Bartimaeus also shows us another part of our role at the end of the gospel passage. Jesus tells him to go on his way, but Bartimaeus’ follows on Jesus’ way, follows on Jesus’ way to Jerusalem, which is where he will suffer and die all for love of us and rise to show us that that love is stronger than death. That’s the journey God invites us all on, to be able to love like Christ loves. And that’s really hard, so that’s why we’ll finding ourselves moving back and forth, being Bartimaeus who gladly follows after Christ, and being Bartimaeus who knows his need, who falls to the floor, who can’t walk anymore, not alone, and calls out for healing, so he can walk together with Jesus, together with the church.

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