Word to the Wise
Monday, July 13, 2020 - Monday in the 15th Week in Ordinary Time
[Isa 1:10-17 and Matt 10:34-11:1]Put away your misdeed from before my eyes; cease doing evil; learn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow. [Isaiah]
Isaiah stands at the top of the short list of "major prophets." (The others are Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel.) His words will be challenging us for the next few days in the first scripture. Those words were challenging in his own time! The book that bears his name seems to have come from three different prophets or perhaps three different "traditions" about Isaiah. His disciples who heard the words wrote them down and collected them into this one book. One consistent theme that winds its way through it all has to do with care for the poor and vulnerable among us. We heard about this recently from Amos, but Isaiah's eloquence contrasts with Amos' bluntness in such a way that it is hard to ignore what really sounds like God speaking directly to us.
The passage today from the very first chapter, written during the time the Assyrians were attacking the northern kingdom (700's BC), attacks a central problem. Faith is more than liturgical splendor! Faith must be expressed in words and deeds of love not just for God but for neighbor as well. God rejects the worship that ignores the widow and orphan. Preachers in our own day sometimes find themselves criticized when they address the challenges of the widow and orphan because some think this is a matter of politics!!! Isaiah reminds us that God cares not one bit for our political affiliation but for how we take care of one another. Our worship should reflect this care and not be an escape from it. AMEN