Word to the Wise
Monday, September 25, 2017 - Monday in the 25th Week in Ordinary Time
[Ezra 1:1-6 and Luke 8:16-18]'All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me, and he has also charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Therefore, whoever aong you belongs to any part of his people, let him go up and may his God be with him.' [Ezra]
These words come from the decree of Cyrus, king of Persia, that ended the exile of the Jews in Babylon. Persia had conquered Babylon and was the new "superpower" in the Middle East. As one might imagine, it was an important time, but it brought many questions, which would face anyone who has left his country involuntarily because of war or persecution. What would they be returning to? Would they become emigrants in their own land because those who remained may have established a new reality? How would they be able to "rebuild?" There are millions of people right now who have left the Middle East to get away from the incessant war. There are the Cubans who want to reclaim their country. There are the "dreamers" in our country who are not sure whether it would be good to go back to their parents' home in Latin America. "Babylon" is all they know.
Given the list of things that are given to those who leave Babylon to return to Judah, it would appear that the exiles didn't do too badly: "silver, gold, goods, and cattle, etc." The "certitude" of Babylon would give way to only the "faith-based" reality of returning and rebuilding the temple of God. Thus "exile" can take on different meanings.
Someone who has left home and moved elsewhere without returning for a long time and then discovers they, like the Prodigal Son, must return and take a new place in an old kingdom, can understand a little of this. There is a lot of welcome and forgiveness to be done. Sometimes in Catholic piety we speak of the earth as a place of exile, with heaven as true "home." This is a bit of a stretch for me since God created the earth and put us here. I don't think God intended earthly life to be an exile. At least today, Cyrus the Persian gives us the idea of "exile" - whether it be geographic or personal or both- to consider and many people to pray for. AMEN
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