Friday, December 11, 2009The Mysteries of Sorrow
We are still like the people of Israel. Jesus tells us that we're like children who sitting in the marketplace say, "We played the flute for you, but you did not dance, we sang a dirge but you did not mourn." That is to say, we are happy with nothing.
Like the people of Israel, our complete freedom from the tyranny of our selves and our desires has been bought at enormous price. And like the Children of Israel we look upon the gift and say, "Send us back to the fleshpots of Egypt where we at least had enough to eat."
People are never satisfied with what they have. There is never enough, or it isn't the right color, or the right texture, or the right temperature. There is always something wrong, something “missing” with whatever is presented. If only we could recognize this restlessness for what it really is--an expression of desire for God. And then we could turn to Him more fully and invite Him in.
The Gospel recalls the amusing modern-day story of a man who, after seeing pictures and speaking to some of its residents believed they'd lied and that there was no city named Cincinnati. Such an attitude illustrates the mindset of Israel's hierarchy in Christ's time. Both John the Baptist preaching repentance of sin followed by Jesus who promised forgiveness and a new, transformed life were dismissed. They attributed Jesus' miracles to Satan and rejected God's messages by finding fault with the messengers.
Today's world demonstrates the same attitudes as those of two thousand years ago. We are suffering from a succession of destructive events--wars, famines, plagues, and natural disasters--yet it seldom occurs to anyone that such calamities stem from our separation from God, our ignoring His sovereignty over us and disregarding His law based upon His love and those truths inherent in His love. When God made man and entrusted this world to our care, He did so in expectation that we would remain in an intimate, loving relationship with Him, governed by His wisdom. Instead we seized power from Him and used our fallen natures to greedily exploit the land and one another.
We seem unaware that our so-called "civilization" has taken a suicidal course because we refuse to admit that our survival depends wholly on our remaining true to God's laws. If mankind is growing more hostile toward one another, if nature has bursts of cataclysmic madness, we can blame ourselves for having broken the "chain of command" between our selves and our Creator. Only a humanity that allows itself to be formed anew in God's goodness and holiness can restore peace, justice and calm order to this world.
Like the people of Israel, our complete freedom from the tyranny of our selves and our desires has been bought at enormous price. And like the Children of Israel we look upon the gift and say, "Send us back to the fleshpots of Egypt where we at least had enough to eat."
People are never satisfied with what they have. There is never enough, or it isn't the right color, or the right texture, or the right temperature. There is always something wrong, something “missing” with whatever is presented. If only we could recognize this restlessness for what it really is--an expression of desire for God. And then we could turn to Him more fully and invite Him in.
The Gospel recalls the amusing modern-day story of a man who, after seeing pictures and speaking to some of its residents believed they'd lied and that there was no city named Cincinnati. Such an attitude illustrates the mindset of Israel's hierarchy in Christ's time. Both John the Baptist preaching repentance of sin followed by Jesus who promised forgiveness and a new, transformed life were dismissed. They attributed Jesus' miracles to Satan and rejected God's messages by finding fault with the messengers.
Today's world demonstrates the same attitudes as those of two thousand years ago. We are suffering from a succession of destructive events--wars, famines, plagues, and natural disasters--yet it seldom occurs to anyone that such calamities stem from our separation from God, our ignoring His sovereignty over us and disregarding His law based upon His love and those truths inherent in His love. When God made man and entrusted this world to our care, He did so in expectation that we would remain in an intimate, loving relationship with Him, governed by His wisdom. Instead we seized power from Him and used our fallen natures to greedily exploit the land and one another.
We seem unaware that our so-called "civilization" has taken a suicidal course because we refuse to admit that our survival depends wholly on our remaining true to God's laws. If mankind is growing more hostile toward one another, if nature has bursts of cataclysmic madness, we can blame ourselves for having broken the "chain of command" between our selves and our Creator. Only a humanity that allows itself to be formed anew in God's goodness and holiness can restore peace, justice and calm order to this world.
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