Dear Friends,

As I was driving home yesterday evening, listening to NPR, the show host interviewed a selection of young men and women whose identities have been profoundly shaped by the polarizing issues of the past two election cycles. Each participant articulated how their sense of self had become entwined with their party’s ideologies, often feeling victimized by those who held differing views. This got me reflecting on how easy it is for us to become trapped in particular identities, whether imposed by ourselves or others, blinding us to the broader aspects of who we truly are. I wondered just how much this has happened to me, as well.

In our gospel lesson for this Sunday, we hear the story of Bartimaeus, a man whose blindness required that he sit by the road begging. We do not know how long he has been blind or how long he has been sitting there, but we do get a sense that his condition has become his identity. I’ve always wondered if Bartimaeus had other attributes – other skills, gifts, talent, that we don’t hear about. A good sense of humor? A mind for math? A compassionate, listening presence?

What we do know is that when he hears Jesus coming, he cried out, “Lord, have Mercy.” Somehow, Bartimaeus mustered the courage to reach out to Jesus. Did he know, deep inside, that his blindness what not his only identity? Did he long to uncover, leave behind, risk everything, to live in to a new and richer identity? 

What would you have done? What do we usually do when we are “stuck” in places or circumstances we never wished to find ourselves? Who hasn’t, from time to time, felt angry, disappointed, afraid…lapsing into self-pity, paralyzed. Even though we know we are more than our situation, more than our current “identity,” we stay put, waiting for the solution to come to us, not we to it. 

Jesus won’t have any of this. When Bartimaeus calls out to him, Jesus does not come running. In fact, he does not answer Bartimaeus at all. Instead, he says to the bigger community, “Call him here,” and they do. “Take heart,” they tell him. “He is calling you.”

This is the pivotal moment. Not only for Bartimaeus, but for all of us who are stuck in an old story, and old identity. Will we, like Bartimaeus, have the heart to haul ourselves up from our old positions and habits of mind? Will we be courageous enough to let go of the story we know, tap into the fullness of our identities, and step into an unknown story?

In the words of the late Kayla McClurg, “This is the hardest part of [transformation,] not just to have an insightful moment but to head out in a new direction. We can walk a different road along with the brave companions who surround us, spreading the news that we are more than the story we have been living. We are more than our long list of losses, our hurts, our failures or even our accomplishments. The past is past. It’s time to see and live the next part of our story.”

Won’t you join me?

Amelie+