01/04/2023

The Old Testament is the record of the revelations made by God to the first humans after Adam. Adam and Eve had misused the freedom that is essential to our humanity and chosen the deception that was supposed to make them gods and thus added by their own choice original sin to God's initial concept of a person, a being who would be capable of knowing loving and serving in freedom without the programming that all of God's other creatures require to be what they are.

God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit has always in his mercy corrected his peoples' failures. Ezekiel was one of the very special Jews who had been able to retain his devotion to the Lord and had thus been granted revelations/warnings to share with the Chosen People. Each of us who hears this mornings readings at mass are still familiar with God. He is not for us a word uttered in exclamation or worse still  initials proclaiming surprise in a text-message.

I am always aware when reading St John's Gospel of what the word "Jew" signifies in my awareness of the history of  humanity. Scholars of today tell us that he is referring to the "religious authorities"and not to all of the "chosen people"who are also Jews as is Mary and all of the Apostles. We are told that God "does not have favourites" but the "Chosen People" have again reoccupied the Holy Land and are clearing it of Gentiles as did their forefathers three millennia ago.

Dear Lord you looked on your creation and you saw that it was good. You know the sins that continue even though you have been,in the begotten not made Jesus, the perfect sacrifice of atonement made for us. Your Church that is visible is sorely lacking and I am often weak in faith. May Mary and  the Saints implore your Grace so that all the Church may return to the joy of the Resurrection and may I avoid sin for this day. Maranatha.