“Master, I want to see.”
The beggar Bartimaeus wants so badly to see
that even when people are shushing him
he continues to cry out:
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
He wants so badly to see
that the minute he hears
that Jesus is calling him
he leaps up and,
leaving behind the cloak
that is likely his only possession,
he runs, heedless
of the unseen obstacles in his way.
Bartimaeus wants so badly
to be cured of his blindness,
which has consigned him to a life of poverty,
begging by the roadside,
that when Jesus asks him,
“What do you want me to do for you?”
he does not hesitate: “Master, I want to see.”
that even when people are shushing him
he continues to cry out:
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
He wants so badly to see
that the minute he hears
that Jesus is calling him
he leaps up and,
leaving behind the cloak
that is likely his only possession,
he runs, heedless
of the unseen obstacles in his way.
Bartimaeus wants so badly
to be cured of his blindness,
which has consigned him to a life of poverty,
begging by the roadside,
that when Jesus asks him,
“What do you want me to do for you?”
he does not hesitate: “Master, I want to see.”
He asks for physical healing,
but his words speak of even deeper desires.
I want to see not simply the world as it is,
but the world as it could be.
I want to see the salvation
of which the prophet Jeremiah spoke:
the great throng returning
to the land of promise—
the blind and the lame,
the mother and the child,
those who left weeping
but now return consoled.
I want to see
all that is scattered made one,
all that is broken made whole,
all that is sorrowing made joyful.
I want to see hatred vanquished,
selfishness shamed,
fear put to flight.
but his words speak of even deeper desires.
I want to see not simply the world as it is,
but the world as it could be.
I want to see the salvation
of which the prophet Jeremiah spoke:
the great throng returning
to the land of promise—
the blind and the lame,
the mother and the child,
those who left weeping
but now return consoled.
I want to see
all that is scattered made one,
all that is broken made whole,
all that is sorrowing made joyful.
I want to see hatred vanquished,
selfishness shamed,
fear put to flight.
Bartimaeus longs to see fulfilled
the promises of God to his people Israel.
But most of all, he wants to see Jesus,
for he already senses
that Jesus is “the Son of David,”
God’s anointed savior,
in whom the hopes of humanity
have taken concrete form,
the one who comes to heal
the ancient curse of sin and death.
He feels this in his bones,
but he wants to see it with his eyes—
not just with his physical eyes,
but with the eyes of faith,
the faith heals both body and soul.
the promises of God to his people Israel.
But most of all, he wants to see Jesus,
for he already senses
that Jesus is “the Son of David,”
God’s anointed savior,
in whom the hopes of humanity
have taken concrete form,
the one who comes to heal
the ancient curse of sin and death.
He feels this in his bones,
but he wants to see it with his eyes—
not just with his physical eyes,
but with the eyes of faith,
the faith heals both body and soul.
Master, I want to see you,
for you are the light
that lights up the world
and keeps the dark at bay.
I want to see you,
for you are my true homeland,
you are the eternity for which
my time-weary soul is thirsting.
for you are the light
that lights up the world
and keeps the dark at bay.
I want to see you,
for you are my true homeland,
you are the eternity for which
my time-weary soul is thirsting.
I want to see you,
but I am a blind beggar,
sitting alone beside the way
on which you pass.
I cry out again and again,
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
Have pity, for my sins
have dimmed the light of my eyes
and darkness is all around me.
Have pity, for the dark terrifies me.
Master, give me the light of your glory
in which I might see you.
Give me the gift of your Holy Spirit,
who promises wisdom and understanding,
counsel and fortitude,
knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.
Let your Spirit’s light guide me
so that I may no longer
stumble unseeing through life.
Let the Spirit’s fire dazzle my eyes
and make my heart pure so I may see you.
but I am a blind beggar,
sitting alone beside the way
on which you pass.
I cry out again and again,
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
Have pity, for my sins
have dimmed the light of my eyes
and darkness is all around me.
Have pity, for the dark terrifies me.
Master, give me the light of your glory
in which I might see you.
Give me the gift of your Holy Spirit,
who promises wisdom and understanding,
counsel and fortitude,
knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.
Let your Spirit’s light guide me
so that I may no longer
stumble unseeing through life.
Let the Spirit’s fire dazzle my eyes
and make my heart pure so I may see you.
His eyes healed and his soul given light,
Bartimaeus now follows Jesus on the way.
He joins Jesus on the journey to Jerusalem,
the city whose name in Hebrew
means “vision of peace.”
He joins Jesus on the way that leads
through suffering and death to resurrection,
to that heavenly city whose light is the Lamb,
where God “will wipe every tear from their eyes,
and there shall be no more
death or mourning,
wailing or pain.”
Bartimaeus now follows Jesus on the way.
He joins Jesus on the journey to Jerusalem,
the city whose name in Hebrew
means “vision of peace.”
He joins Jesus on the way that leads
through suffering and death to resurrection,
to that heavenly city whose light is the Lamb,
where God “will wipe every tear from their eyes,
and there shall be no more
death or mourning,
wailing or pain.”
In our Catholic tradition we speak of
the ultimate fulfillment promised us by God
as the visio beatifica—
the “beatific vision”—
which we might also translate as
“the seeing that makes us blessed”
or “the beholding that itself is bliss.”
Saint Paul writes to the Corinthians,
“At present we see indistinctly,
as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
At present I know partially;
then I shall know fully,
as I am fully known.”
The fulfillment for which we long
is to know the depths of God,
to know the divine dance of love
that is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
and in knowing the depths of God
to truly know ourselves for the first time
by seeing ourselves as God sees us,
artifacts of eternal love.
the ultimate fulfillment promised us by God
as the visio beatifica—
the “beatific vision”—
which we might also translate as
“the seeing that makes us blessed”
or “the beholding that itself is bliss.”
Saint Paul writes to the Corinthians,
“At present we see indistinctly,
as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
At present I know partially;
then I shall know fully,
as I am fully known.”
The fulfillment for which we long
is to know the depths of God,
to know the divine dance of love
that is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
and in knowing the depths of God
to truly know ourselves for the first time
by seeing ourselves as God sees us,
artifacts of eternal love.
Master, I want to see.
I want to see with the eyes of faith,
the faith that weds my soul to you.
I want the bridal veil to be lifted
so that my soul can behold
its beloved face to face
and see itself
I want to see with the eyes of faith,
the faith that weds my soul to you.
I want the bridal veil to be lifted
so that my soul can behold
its beloved face to face
and see itself
through your eyes of love.
Jesus, Son of David, have pity on us all.
In your mercy, let us see your face.
In your mercy, let us see your face.
