Commentary
Poor
and Clean of Heart
We
have been reading from the Gospel According to Mark. For this feast
of All Saints, we switch to the Matthew. However, the passages from
Mark of the last two Sundays might give us some good examples to
reflect on two of the “beatitudes” – “Blessed are the poor
in spirit” and “Blessed are the clean of heart.”
In
the Gospel for the 29th
Sunday, James and John asked Jesus to let them sit one at his right
and one at his left. Worse than their demand is the way they speak
to Jesus, “We
want you to do for us whatever we ask of you” (Mark 10: 35).
That
doesn't seem to be the attitude of the poor in spirit. They think
highly of themselves. They appear presumptuous
or
even arrogant.
Their
attitude leads James and John to make such an obnoxious demand. The
demand also suggests their desire for power and control.
The
blind man Bartimaeus, on the contrary, acknowledges his nothingness.
More importantly, he recognizes and professes his faith in the Son of
David. He pleads with Jesus to “have pity on” him (Mark 10: 47,
Gospel for 30th
Sunday). He is poor both in possessions and in spirit.
The
recognition of his poverty leads Bartimaeus to depend on Jesus, not
on his possessions, position, connections, or talents. And once he
has received the sight that he asks for, he follows Jesus as Jesus
continues his journey to Jerusalem.
Looking
at it this way reminds us that the two beatitudes “Blessed are the
poor in spirit” and “Blessed are the clean of heart” go
together. If and when we are poor in spirit then we become more
dependent on God. God becomes more the sole assurance of our heart.
