Proclaim, Praise, Shout!

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

We’ve been taught since young, that shouting and yelling are rude and offensive. So, we’ve learnt measured speech, how to tone down and moderate the volume of our voice, speak in a hushed and muffled tone in public places, out of respect for others. We have been so good at this that we have forgotten that the essence of evangelisation, of proclaiming the Good News calls for the reverse. In the first reading, the Prophet Jeremiah tells the people to proclaim the good news of how God will rescue them in three imperative commands: “Proclaim! Praise! Shout!” Can you imagine if he told the people to do this: “Be quiet! Lower your volume! Whisper if you really have to say anything!” Thank God he didn’t. We wouldn’t be here today if Christians in past centuries had chosen to remain quiet.

Likewise, we see the example of the blind man Bartimaeus, in today’s gospel reading. He didn’t attempt to soften his voice when he wanted to get the Lord’s attention, thinking that politeness would win him an audience, No! He had the nerve to brazenly shout aloud, “Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me!” Our Lord took no offence in this man’s yelling and impassioned speech but His disciples did. They immediately tried to silence him. They were not only indifferent to his blindness but now wish to render him mute too. Our Lord would not have any of this!

The attempts of the crowds to quieten Bartimaeus only stoked the hunger in his soul. He wanted mercy, and he wanted vision, and ultimately, he wanted Jesus. The one thing Bartimaeus needed was the one thing only Jesus could provide— salvation. In a way, even before his healing at the hands of the Lord, Bartimaeus was already displaying one of the key characteristics of a disciple - he is one who will not shut up in the face of discouragement. Instead, he understands that he must proclaim, praise and shout the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Good News of salvation which the Lord brings. Despite the opposition and the efforts of others to suppress his voice, Bartimaeus was not daunted. Nothing was going to deter him. Nothing was going to silence him. If we only have a modicum of his resilience and tenacity when it comes to preaching the gospel.

Another proof that this man is an example of a true disciple is found at the end of the story. Our Lord having healed him, sends him on his way, but instead, this enlightened man decides to follow our Lord on the Lord’s way. This episode takes place just before the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the beginning of Holy Week which would climax in the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord. Where our Lord’s other disciples attempt to dissuade Him to take this path and each run off when the going gets tough, Bartimaeus chooses to follow the path of his master whom he has already proclaimed as “the Son of David.”

Many of us would find Bartimaeus’ yelling disturbing and irritating.  Why so much noise? We would prefer a quieter, civilised and highly sanitised method of conveying the same message, but perhaps it needs the shouting of Bartimaeus to break through the obtuse walls of modern society, who has chosen to be both blind and deaf to the message of the gospel. In fact, modern society seems to have erected an impenetrable wall to keep out the noise of the gospel and only the most fervent and impassioned proclamation of the gospel can penetrate this shell. The world can only hear the gospel, if we choose to be a nuisance.

We should be like St Paul, so emboldened by the gospel that we should never hesitate to proclaim it: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Rom 1:16). The problem is that most Catholics actually do feel ashamed of proclaiming the Good News of Christ. They do so because of the following reasons:

First, many of us believe that we would be rude and offensive if we were to share our faith with others. We believe that silence about our faith is the most respectful way we interact with people who do not share the same beliefs as ours. We do not wish to foist our ideas or values on them.

Second, many are ashamed, not so much of the gospel but of their lack of knowledge and depth of knowledge concerning their own faith. So, the truth is not that we are ashamed or embarrassed by Christ or the gospel, but with our own inadequacy.

Third, we actually believe that not sharing our faith with others is actually taking the cue from our Lord’s example. Many are convinced that He only challenged the religious self-righteous crowd and pretty much left sinners and Gentiles to their own devices.

But the reason why we must not be afraid of speaking about our faith is because it is the most loving thing to do. Preaching the gospel does not mean we hold others in disdain or that we are contemptuous of their current situation. Preaching the gospel is not smirky arrogant expression of triumphalism, that we are better than them. No, preaching the gospel is because they, just like us, have the right to hear the truth, the truth about salvation, the truth that will set us free from the shackles of sin and addiction. To be quiet is not charity. On the contrary, it is the exact reverse - choosing not to proclaim, praise and shout the Good News reveals our lack of charity and our twisted penchant for self-preservation.

It is good manners to refrain from yelling at others, whether publicly or privately, but it is never appropriate to remain quiet or couch the gospel in politically correct niceties. Do not be afraid to be labelled a nuisance. Our Lord was considered one too. In fact, calling attention to a sinking ship when everyone is sublimely enjoying themselves is not nuisance, but charity, and it takes courage to speak the life-saving Truth above the din and noise of lies and falsehoods that will sink us.

If preaching the Word is indeed a nuisance, let it be a positive nuisance - one that will shake us from our slumber, one that will move us to repentance, one that will ignite the fire of evangelical zeal within the hearts of our listeners. So don’t be silenced by detractors or choose to censor yourself - “Proclaim! Praise! Shout!” The world needs to hear the gospel! The world has a right to hear the gospel! “Proclaim! Praise! Shout!”