Word to the Wise
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 - Tuesday in the 12th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gen 13:2, 5-18 and Matt 7:6, 12-14,996]The Lord said to Abram: "Look about you, and from where you are, gaze to the north and south, east and west; all the land that you see I will give to you and your descendants forever. I will make your descendants like the dust of the earth; of anyone could count the dust of the earth, your descendants too might be counted. Set forth and walk about in the land, through its length and breadth, for to you I will give it."
This week, the church will be meditating, in the first scripture of the day, on the saga of Abraham, "our father in faith!" Given that Christian, Jew and Moslem all consider Abraham their "father in faith," this biblical figure is a very important one! The account in yesterday's first reading (Monday) begins rather abruptly with Abraham following a mysterious voice that commands him to take his family and livestock and move to a land that would be given to him. This was no small matter because he is commanded to leave his "kinsmen and his father's house" and go elsewhere! In a tribal and clan oriented world a departure like this would be highly significant. Abraham's obedience to God's command would later be an important model (and issue) in Jesus' preaching and the preaching of St. Paul and the Letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament!
The significance of today's passage lies in the gift of the land to Abraham and his descendants, who will be as numerous as the grains of dust! The conviction in faith about this gift is in no small part the motivating force in the later establishment of the modern nation of Israel and the dispute with Palestinians over the occupation of that land!! For Christians, the connection is twofold. First there is the giant historical sweep of God's plan of salvation which takes form in Abraham's obedience and the subsequent development of faith down to Jesus' time. Second, there is the connection of the territory with the earthly life and ministry of Jesus. This connection is getting more and more tenuous as Christians leave the region to escape political violence and turmoil. The Christian record there is also historically subject to criticism because of the crusades in the Middle Ages. Jew, Christian and Moslem all consider this territory to be sacred and this "competition" has been a tragic one. One wonders what Abraham would make of it. In today's passage, he and Lot realize that competition for the land could be disastrous, so they agree to part and go separate ways.
The significance of Abraham and the subsequent story of the Chosen People forms the broad background to Jesus' own ministry and our own salvation. To give Abraham (his name changed from Abram later on) his due is to acknowledge our "Father in faith." AMEN