Tuesday, August 12, 2008

The reading for today got me thinking. In case you missed it, here it is, along with my insights. I hope they're not too far off the mark!
Ez 2:8—3:4The Lord GOD said to me:As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you:be not rebellious like this house of rebellion,but open your mouth and eat what I shall give you.It was then I saw a hand stretched out to me,in which was a written scroll which he unrolled before me.It was covered with writing front and back, (Sounds like the Word of God to me!)and written on it was: Lamentation and wailing and woe!(This sounds like Christ's passion!)He said to me: Son of man, eat what is before you;(The Eucharist?)eat this scroll, then go, speak to the house of Israel.(After receiving the Word, share it with the world!)So I opened my mouth and he gave me the scroll to eat.Son of man, he then said to me,feed your belly and fill your stomachwith this scroll I am giving you.I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth(Again, the Eucharist?).He said: Son of man, go now to the house of Israel,and speak my words to them.

Sometimes the stories of the prophets are, well, prophetic. Here we have God telling Ezekiel to eat the Word. Of course we all know that the Word was with God and the Word IS God, (or Jesus). Ezekiel describes the Word as lamentation and wailing and woe. This speaks to me of the passion of Christ. Then Ezekiel is told to go to the house of Israel and speak the words to them. After we recieve the Word of God and His Son (the very Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ) in the Eucharist, we are sent to evangelize through our faith and works. This plays right into what Christ said: That He came into the world not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. There are so many of these parallels between the Old Testament and New Testament that I think my next step should be a bible study. But I just don't have the time! Does anybody know of a good online bible study?

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"I demand from you deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to excuse or absolve yourself from it.

I am giving you three ways of exercising mercy toward your neighbor:
the first — by deed, the second — by word, the third — by prayer. In these three degrees is contained the fullness of mercy, and it is an unquestionable proof of love for Me. By this means a soul glorifies and pays reverence to My mercy.

Many souls ... are often worried because they do not have the material means with which to carry out an act of mercy. Yet spiritual mercy, which requires neither permissions nor storehouses, is much more meritorious and is within the grasp of every soul.

If a soul does not exercise mercy somehow or other, it will not obtain My mercy on the day of judgment. Oh, if only souls knew how to gather eternal treasure for themselves, they would not be judged, for they would forestall My judgment with their mercy".