Now in the second last week of Ordinary Time, Tony Worner, Leader of Formation at St Agnes’ Catholic reads from the Gospel of Luke (18: 35-43) in which we hear the story of the healing of the blind man.

Tony says this Gospel story is so vivid in imagery, it’s easy to see it as actually happening. One of the Christian traditions of praying is to actually put ourselves in the story and ask, “Where am I in the story? How do I see myself?” and no matter how uncomfortable it might be, sit with that in prayer. “Am I the blind beggar calling out to Jesus? Or am I one of the crowd, scolding the beggar?” In today’s world, Tony says, there are many people sitting at the side of the road, shouting to us as we pass by to have pity on them, but they often shout in strange ways: by behaving badly … by taking drugs and alcohol; by sulking, remaining silent or locked up in their rooms; sometimes by insisting that they are happy to be at the side of the road while others pass by.

Like Jesus, we need to stop all that we are doing so that we can hear them express their deep longing to have their sight, to have their dignity, so that can be restored to them. The blind beggar is like the persistent widow in Saturday’s Gospel, where he twice, and much louder the second time, cries out to Jesus. Tony says, we too, must be persistent in our crying out, in our prayer to God … Lord, have mercy on me. Heal me, so that I may give glory and praise to you. Amen.