Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Does the word of God ever catch you off guard? The place and time of Amos was a time not unlike our own; overall a prosperous time, punctuated by various natural and political disasters. According to Amos, the lesson of all those calamities was to return to God and follow the commandments. Yet, we are no doubt surprised by the threats and curses embedded in Amos’s prophesy. I certainly was. In our present time, what do we take from a fiery prophet?
At the core of this discourse between the people and their Lord is his call of holiness. The lifestyle detailed in the commandments leads naturally to prosperity and blessing. In our time, we have the benefit of Jesus’s completion of the commandments; we are to love God and love one another. This call to a holy love is a total lifestyle change diverging from the global culture of market capitalism, which seeks to gobble up people, experiences, and possessions in an endless, fruitless attempt to bring happiness.
Consider the ways our God has shown you abundant love. Take time to remember a number of them. They are made manifest both personally and communally. We are blest with generous and watchful family, friends, and neighbors, an active parish, and some very responsive societal institutions. Consider also the trials we suffer: gun violence, pandemic, abortion, racism, climate change, and political instability. Aren’t each of these a result of a personal and communal failure to love and value one another?
God sets before ancient Israel and us ‘a blessing and a curse,’ and pleads with us to choose life. Amos saw that again in salvation history, God’s people were not moved to live a holy life by love and blessing; they were not reminded of the natural consequences of sin by close-hitting disasters. “So now I will deal with you in my own way, O Israel! And since I will deal thus with you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” How sad and unfortunate! May we avoid the same fate. Spirit of God, move our hearts to love and work for justice as a holy lifestyle, each day.
—Chris Nieport