Word to the Wise
Monday, July 4, 2022 - Monday in the 14th Week in Ordinary Time
[Hos 2:16, 17c-18, 21-22 and Matt 9:18-26]
JULY 4, 2022 INDEPENDENCE DAY, U.S.A. [Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati, OP]
[Hosea 2:16, 17-18b, 21-22 and Matthew 9:18-26. These scriptures may vary from place to place in the USA because of Independence Day or in Dominican locations due to the feast of Bl Pier Giorgio Frassati. The ones above are for Monday in the 14th week in Ordinary Time.]
I will lead her into the desert and speak to her heart. [Hosea]
The prophet Hosea was commanded by God to marry a prostitute whose faithless behavior was meant to symbolize the relationship between the Chosen People and God. Just as Hosea would plead with Gomer (her name) to return to the marriage, so would God plead with Israel to forsake foreign gods and return to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
The line quoted above, in today's passage from Hosea, is a favorite in many retreat locations, but especially at one out near Tucson, AZ, where I have preached many retreats. The desert location has a way of confronting one with stark choices for survival! But "deserts" can take many forms, as can our faithless behavior. Sometimes the consequences of bad choices provide us with a "desert" to wander in. Even there, like the Children of Israel, we can become impatient with God and create a divinity of our own design like the golden calf! [Exodus 32].
As we celebrate Independence Day in the U.S.A., perhaps we can hear the pleading of God and Hosea to return to the values that have united us as a nation and expressed in the Declaration of Independence. Fundamental to all of this is the respect for ALL human life from womb to tomb. If we say, "God bless America!" we should remember to be worthy of that blessing in the deserts we create for ourselves. AMEN