Hampas-Palayok

30th Sunday In Ordinary Time
25 October 2009



Come, let us worship Christ, whose bride is the Church.

First reading Jeremiah 31:7-9

The Lord says this:
Shout with joy for Jacob!
Hail the chief of nations!
Proclaim! Praise! Shout:
‘The Lord has saved his people,
the remnant of Israel!’
See, I will bring them back
from the land of the North
and gather them from the far ends of earth;
all of them: the blind and the lame,
women with child, women in labour:
a great company returning here.
They had left in tears,
I will comfort them as I lead them back;
I will guide them to streams of water,
by a smooth path where they will not stumble.
For I am a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my first-born son.

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 125:1-7

Second reading Hebrews 5:1-6

Every high priest has been taken out of mankind and is appointed to act for men in their relations with God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins; and so he can sympathise with those who are ignorant or uncertain because he too lives in the limitations of weakness. That is why he has to make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honour on himself, but each one is called by God, as Aaron was. Nor did Christ give himself the glory of becoming high priest, but he had it from the one who said to him: You are my son, today I have become your father, and in another text: You are a priest of the order of Melchizedek, and for ever.

Gospel Mark 10:46-52

As Jesus left Jericho with his disciples and a large crowd, Bartimaeus (that is, the son of Timaeus), a blind beggar, was sitting at the side of the road. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout and to say, ‘Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me.’ And many of them scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he only shouted all the louder, ‘Son of David, have pity on me.’ Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him here.’ So they called the blind man. ‘Courage,’ they said ‘get up; he is calling you.’ So throwing off his so cloak, he jumped up and went to Jesus. Then Jesus spoke, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Rabbuni,’ the blind man said to him ‘Master, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has saved you.’ And immediately his sight returned and he followed him along the road.

Reflection
By Fidji Rivera-Sarmiento

I have never liked playing hampas-palayok as a child. Not that I am such a kill-joy during parties, but it’s the sensation of not seeing anything. To add to the torment, an adult would make you turn around several times till you are crazy dizzy, while you try your best to walk straight (and stop yourself from throwing up). As if the abuse is not enough, you have to carefully listen to everyone’s instructions, “Kanan…Kaliwa… Diretso!” while they laugh at you when you try to hit dead air instead of the pot. Talk about children’s games! (I find it even worse when children have to hit a piñata shaped like a boy, or a deer, or a cartoon character.)

My fear of being blind has also led me to be interested in creating a self-booster therapy for my college thesis. Our group decided to study on the self-concept of non-congenitally blind teens. We discovered how frustrating it was for them to be applauded for their work, like doing clay creations, tie-dyed shirts, to name a few, but not being able to actually cherish their masterpieces on their own since they cannot see what they did.

So just imagine Bartimaeus’ plight. It was a desperate call to Jesus. It was a faithful and trusting plea to Jesus.

Today may we reflect on our own blindness, be it consciously or not. We are blind in so many ways – each time we shut our eyes to the world and serve our own pleasures instead of our needy neighbors; when we become greedy for fame or fortune and resort to graft; when we turn our backs to the humane values to satisfy our quest for more intelligence and sophisticated science; when we become addicted not only to prohibited drugs, but to work as well; or as petty as each time we say that love is blind and we tend to tolerate our neighbor’s wrongdoings. These and a lot more make us blind to the truth, and Bartimaeus had set a perfect example. We only have to acknowledge our limitations and ask Jesus to deliver us from the dark.

Today, let our prayer be “Master, I want to see.”

* Hampas-Palayok is a popular Pinoy children’s game, pretty much like hit-the- piñata, where a blindfolded child is asked to hit an earthen pot filled with goodies for everyone to enjoy (and fight over).





Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus,

We ask for Your Wisdom. Help us to see through Your Eyes. Make us realize that human as we are, our hearts may sometimes become blind and selfish. May we rise above ourselves and be victorious over our sins and weaknesses. Lead us, shepherd us, so we may also guide others to Your Path. Amen.