From Sight to Vision

Rabbouni, my teacher, I call to you.  Open our eyes that we may see your glory.  Open our hearts that we may let it into our lives.  Open our ears that we may be directed in sharing it.  Amen.
 

For the past few weeks we have been wandering through a section of the Gospel of Mark that is all, in some way, about vision.  It starts in Chapter 8, where the Pharisees demand a sign from Jesus.  He refuses.  That is followed by his disciples being unable to understand what Jesus has done and what he is saying.

Along comes a blind man.

Jesus takes him aside where no one else, not even the disciples, can see.  Jesus cures him and sends him on his way, making sure that none see that he has been cured.

Curious.

This kind of thing continues for a while.  The disciples have moments of insight followed by a complete lack of understanding.  Jesus refuses to prove anything.  He has crowds around him and he warns them about the cost of following.

We skip forward a ways into chapter 10.  James and John want Jesus to do something for them.  Jesus asks them “What is it you want me to do for you?”  They ask for places of honour when Jesus comes into his glory.  They ask to be seen and recognized as special disciples.  They have no idea what their request will cost them, or even what they are really asking for.

Along comes a blind man.

The blind man throws off his cloak and comes to Jesus.  Jesus again asks “What do you want me to do for you?”  The blind man says “Rabbouni, let me see again.”

Oh, and somewhere in the middle of this we have the transfiguration.  Jesus revealed in all of his glory and claimed by God as his Beloved Son, where some of the disciples call Jesus Rabbi.

This is all about vision but it is very confusing.  Everything is upside down.  We have disciples who see bits and pieces but don’t really understand what they see.  We have crowds who follow Jesus even though they aren’t allowed to see anything and are warned of the extreme cost of following.  We have blind men who get to see.

And we have two very similar words: rabbi and rabbouni.  Similar but very different.  A bit of Boring theology (that is to say from theologian Eugene Boring).  The word rabbouni, which is used only twice in the New Testament, is a reverent form of rabbi used by rabbis to address God.  Mary uses this word to address Jesus after the Resurrection.

The disciples, after seeing Jesus in his full glory address him as their personal teacher.  The blind man, not being able to see a thing, addresses Jesus as a teacher of the faithful praying to God.

Why is it so difficult to see?  What is Jesus trying to say to us?

I think it is about perspective.  When we have many things, it is very hard to see what we need and what we merely want.  In this same section, Jesus says “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

All of us here have things.  We all see things that we want.  We live in a society that is intent on consuming.  Does this mean that we are doomed?  I don’t think so.  But it does mean that staying focussed on what is really important is very hard.  I think I jumped ahead of myself there a bit.  Even seeing what is important can be nearly impossible.

 

Are we being asked to blind ourselves to the physical world so that we can see God?  Once again I don’t think so.  I think we are being called to open our eyes in a different way.  To change our perspective.  Jesus said that it is essentially impossible for the rich, and I think we all qualify as rich, to enter the kingdom of God, but he also said that “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”

Why did Bartimaeus throw off his cloak?

His cloak was his livelihood.  It identified him as a beggar and brought him enough food to live.  When he went to Jesus he had faith that he would not need to beg again.  He did not ask Jesus to heal him.  He prayed to God that he might see.  And he did that as our teacher.  We would do well to learn from him.

I don’t think any of us are as blind as the disciples or as visionary as Bartimaeus.  We are all somewhere in between.  By trusting in God and asking God’s help, we can work towards seeing more.  Not only does God call us to him, but he meets us where we are.  Where ever that might be.

I’m going to leave you with one final thought from Helen Keller.  She was once asked if there was anything worse than being blind.  Her answer was “Yes.  Having no vision.”