Word to the Wise
Friday, August 20, 2010 - St. Bernard, abbot and doctor of the church
[Ezekiel 37:1-14 and Matthew 22:34-40]"Son of man, can these bones come to life?" I answered, "Lord God, you alone know that." Then he said to me: Prophesy over these bones, and say to them: Dry Bones, hear the word of the Lord!
Many of us of a particular generation can remember the song from the 50's, "Dry Bones," and the chorus: "Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones, Now hear the word of the Lord!" sung, I seem to recall, by Tennessee Ernie Ford! The song was inspired by the vivid vision of Ezekiel in the first scripture for today. Don't deny yourself the whole reading, because it is one of the most remarkable prophetic visions of the bible! The rattling of the bones coming together inspired a remarkable performance by the famous Baird Marionettes in which one bone came bouncing on stage and was gradually joined by other bones until the whole skeleton was dancing to the song! "The head bone's connected to the neck bone.....etc.!" Ezekiel is trying to bring hope to the Jewish exiles in Babylon! His imagery is an indicator that he was dealing with a very serious morale problem! I have used this vision as the basis for a retreat for religious. "Shall these bones live?" Many religious congregations in this country have gone for years without a single novice entering to give hope for continuing the mission of the congregation. How can they continue to live? In other contexts, we can enter our own time of "dry bones" in which everything seems to have dried up and we see only a bleak road ahead! Shall our bones live? God's response through Ezekiel is a thundering "YES!" Perhaps we can supplement the energy of the vision with St. Paul's image of the body of Christ in 1 Corinthians 12:14-26. God's Spirit can work wonders in our dry bones if we are willing to let it bring us together individually as well as collectively. These bones shall live, indeed! AMEN
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