He Lost His Coat In The Deal
(Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43)
The story of Bartimaeus was recorded by Matthew, Mark and Luke and a superficial reading of the accounts has cause thoughtless Bible critics to holler: Contradiction! Contradiction! Their claim is based upon a different perspective concerning the location of the event. Matthew and Mark state that it happened as Jesus was leaving Jericho and Luke says that it occurred as He “came near Jericho.”
A historical examination of the time reveals two Jericho cities. Herod the Great had built a new Jericho, about two miles south [toward Jerusalem] from the old Jericho. The event took place as He went away from one city and approached the other.
Contradiction! Contradiction! The skeptics yell again when they read what appears to them a variation in the number of blind men. But the fact that Matthew says two blind men were healed, while Mark and Luke mention only one does not constitute a contradiction. If Mark and Luke had stated that Jesus healed only one man and Matthew said there were two that would be contradictory.
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Some of those with the Lord tried to quiet the blind men, but they called out the more. Then Jesus stopped and called for them to come to him. Bartimaeus threw his coat aside and perhaps hurried as fast as a blind man can hurry to hear Jesus ask him what he wanted and, “The blind man said to Him, My Lord, that I may see again.” (Mark
In the short story “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver, the narrator, Bub, is as metaphorically blind as his guest, Robert, is literally blind. Bub has many unwarranted misconceptions about life, blind people in particular. He also has many insecurities that prevent him from getting too close to people. Through his interaction with Robert, Bub is able to open his mind and let go of his self-doubt for a moment and see the world in a different light.
As a child, when it is time for him to join the children at the front of the church, would not think about twice about pretending to find Jesus in order to relieve the focus quickly narrowing down to only him. As the last child left young Hughes, he whispered, “God damn! I’m tired o’ sitting here. Let’s get up and be saved.” (Hughes, 111), which leaves Hughes kneeling before the entire church.
By becoming close with Robert, the man in this story experienced what was necessary to gain an understanding of what life is like for the blind. The man began to draw the cathedral to try and help Robert visualize what one looked like. What he didn't realize at the time was that Robert was helping him to visualize what blindness felt like. Bibliography: Carver, Raymond. "Cathedral".
Finally the actions and feelings of the other characters successfully shows the development of McMurphy as a Christ figure and hero. Clearly smiliarities can be drawn between McMurphy and Jesus' healing. Jesus, made blind men see and mute men speak. McMurphy is the one who prompted the Chief to speak for the first time in years, when he says "Thank-you." (Page 184) and eventually, McMurphy "heals" Chief of his `deafness' and `dumbness'.
The husband in Raymond Carvers “Cathedral” wasn’t enthusiastic about his wife’s old friend, whom was a blind man coming over to spend the night with them. His wife had kept in touch with the blind man since she worked for him in Seattle years ago. He didn’t know the blind man; he only heard tapes and stories about him. The man being blind bothered him, “My idea of blindness came from the movies. In the movies, the blind moved slowly and never laughed. Sometimes they were led by seeing-eye dogs. A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to. (Carver 137)” The husband doesn’t suspect his ideas of blind people to be anything else. The husband is already judging what the blind man will be like without even getting to actually know him. It seems he has judged too soon as his ideas of the blind man change and he gets a better understanding of not only the blind man, but his self as well.
The story begins with an elderly lawyer, whose business picks up to the point where he needs to hire a third scrivener. Nippers and Turkey, his current scriveners, are overworked and have serious health issues; Nippers suffers from stomach problems, and Turkey is an alcoholic. Enter Bartleby, the dreary, desolate, “forlorn-looking” applicant. For whatever reason, the lawyer hires Bartleby. In the beginning Bartleby’s production and work are excellent, but begin to seriously deteriorate throughout the story, after being asked to perform different tasks. Bartleby’s work performance gradually deteriorates until he is performing no work at all. The lawyer relinquishes any responsibility for Bartleby, his work, or his well being, until the time of his passing. Upon learning of Bartleby’s passing, the lawyer re-examines the world through Bartleby’s eyes, and gains an understanding of his misery and suffering.
As he drew near that city, a light brighter than the noonday sun suddenly engulfed him. A voice inquired; “Saul, Saul, why do you continue to persecute me?” Saul responded: “who are you lord?” The voice was identified as Jesus of Nazareth! The stunned persecutor was instructed to enter Damascus where he would be informed as to what he “must do.” Blinded as a consequence of this miraculous vision in which Christ actually appeared to him (acts 9:17; I Corinthians 15:8), Saul was led into the
Many times people are blind to the truth that is right in front of them. The solution to their problems may have been blatantly obvious, however, they could not actually “see” their answer by their blindness to the truth. There have been instances where being blind is not actually a handicap, but more of a tool to see things to a deeper meaning. Although the blind may not have physical sight, they have another kind of vision. In Sophocles’ play, Oedipus the King, Tiresias, the blind prophet, addresses the truth of the prophecy to Oedipus and Jocasta. Oedipus has been blind to the truth of the prophecy of killing his father and marrying his mother his whole life. Once Oedipus discovers the truth, he loses his physical vision by blinding himself. Within these cases, the central theme of blindness can be expressed by Oedipus’s ignorance to see the higher vision- the truth
Adding to the obvious structural references to cathedrals and religion, the language and character actions present further evidence of an epiphany of divine proportions. The television program which the characters watch together deals entirely with cathedrals. This spurs the first real conversation between the narrator and the blind man. This presents religion as some form of common ground, on which one could stand, even without sight. When first asked by Robert, the blind man, if he was "in any way religious," the narrator asserts that he is not, and goes on to explain how cathedrals and religion "don’t mean any...
Metaphorically speaking he was blind. He was describing his wife situation. She was living with him for years under those conditions.
... when he closes his eyes in order to imagine and draw the cathedral. ”Close your eyes now, the blind man said to me. I did it. I closed them just like he said. Are they closed? He said. Don’t fudge. They are closed, I said. Keep them that way, he said. He said, don’t stop now. Draw. So we kept on with it. His fingers rode my fingers as my hand went over the paper. It was nothing else in my life up to now. Then he said, I think that’s it. I think you got it, he said. Take a look. What do you think? But I had my eyes closed. I thought I would keep them that way for a little longer. I thought it was something I ought to do. Well, he said. Are you looking? My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But, I didn’t feel like I was inside anything. It’s really something I said”. (Page 108). By becoming blind he sees clearly how the blind man’s world really is. Being temporarily blind opens his eyes to the world around him. He can understand the handicap, with understanding comes compassion, and the compassion has caused him to develop new insight into the world around him. Interaction with the blind man has allowed him to see, and has removed him from his own personal cave.
In Ralph Waldo Emerson essay’s “Self-Reliance,” the author supports the idea of the “genius” inside each person by making many strong assertions concluding that what a man thinks is always true in his nature. Emerson interprets many examples about different aspects in life to demonstrate that an individual is always surrounded by society’s restrictions and traditions, sometime evil customs. Therefore, if a man was not conscious to recognize what is the core of the problem, he would be baffled by the existent ideas and forget his insight. In “Bartleby the Scrivener,” Herman Melville, the author, describes a character Bartleby as an unconventional man with a unique lifestyle and not following what his boss asks as well as not being bothered by
People can be “blinded” to the truth. The answer to their question or solution to their problem may have been obvious. Yet, they could not "see" the answer. They were blinded to the truth. Associations have been made between being blind and enlightened. A blind person is said to have powers to see invisible things. They "see" into the future. The blind may not have physical sight, but they have another kind of vision. In Sophocles' King Oedipus, Teiresias, the blind prophet, presents the truth to King Oedipus and Jocasta. Oedipus has been blinded to the truth his whole life. When he does find the truth, he loses his physical vision. Because of the truth, Oedipus blinds himself. Jocasta was blind to the true identity of Oedipus. Even when she found out the truth, she refused to accept it. In this case, those who are blind ultimately do have a higher vision - the truth.
There were many doubters, even among those who walked with Jesus for His three years of ministry. The best known is the story of Thomas, who didn't believe until he had touched the wounds on Christ's hands (Jn 20:25). There is also the fact that Christ revealed Himself to a group of people equaling 500 (1 Cor.
The merchant claims that he knows nothing of long-suffering wives. Rather, if his wife were to marry the devil, she would overmatch even him. The Merchant claims that there is a great difference between Griselde's exceptional obedience and his wife's more common cruelty. The Merchant has been married two months and has loathed every minute of it. The Host asks the Merchant to tell a tale of his horrid wife.