Bartimaeus or the Rich Young Ruler

On Day 26 of the little book The Social Justice Bible Challenge the author of the piece uses as her scripture reference the incident that occurred between Jesus and Bartimaeus. The first thing that caught my attention in the scripture in verse 52b of chapter 10 of Mark was this: "...and he [Bartimaeus] followed him on the way." I like this phrase because I think that it incapsulates what discipleship is. I like it for another reason as well. Today there are those who take the name of Christian, in the church , in government, and others, and who then do not then"follow the way" of Jesus. They are more like another individual that the author of the meditation cites, the Rich Young Ruler. To quote the Rev. Canon Callaway, "... the prosperous young man who zealously kept God's law is trapped by his wealth." Trapped by his wealth seems very contemporary. That is the contrast that the author emphasises; Bartimaus gives up his sole possession, his cloak, to follow Jesus while the Rich Young Ruler can not give up his wealth. Those who preach the Prosperity Gospel, the current administration in D.C. and others who finance politicians who champion laws that favor the rich at the expense of the less fortunate are modern day versions of the Rich Young Ruler who do not follow "the way". (The encounter with Bartimaeus is found in Mark 10:46-52 and with the Rich Young Ruler in Mark 10: 10-22.)

At the end of each section of The Social Justice Bible Challenge there are questions for the reader to ponder. The first question at the end of Day 26 was, "The recent wave of refugees is one of the world's most explosive social issues. There are now 100 million refugees representing 1% of the world's population. What does Jesus' encounter with Bartimaeus and the rich man say about how we see and respond to refugees?" I'll leave you to ponder that question for yourself. However, in my estimation it speaks volumes about how the current administration in Washington treats and labels refugees; and that treatment and labeling does not reflect the direction Jesus would have us take. Those who support it do not "follow the way".