Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time
(Revelation 1:1-4.2:1-5; Luke 18:35-43)
Although the beggar in today’s gospel lacks vision, he has
insight. He knows that he needs the Lord’s
mercy. His cry, “’Jesus, Son of David,
have pity on me!,’” manifests as much his want of forgiveness as his desire to see.
The peoples’ rebuke of the beggar shows their ignorance of
Jesus’ primary mission. They rally
behind Jesus as political enthusiasts gather around a particularly promising
candidate. They see him as the leader
who will bring Israel home-rule, not pardon for their sins. Of course, their observation is
short-sighted. Jesus is Son of God before
he is Son of David. He came to free humans
from the evil that has grasped them more tightly than the Romans can ever do.
We too may have difficulty seeing ourselves as sinners in
need of forgiveness. We may justify our sinful
acts like lying, sexual deviance, and cheating as not as wicked as others’. We may not even acknowledge our sins of desire
like scandalous pride, plotting envy, and scornful contempt. Fortunately, Jesus is still coming to save us.
