Justice and Mercy

Sometimes, the daily Mass readings really grab me.  Today, the old testament reading from the book of Ezekiel jumped off the page.  Ezekiel’s sixth century BC prophecy to the prince of Tyre could be proclaimed to our own nation today.

It is true “all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God,” (Rm 3:23), and my own sin “is ever before me” (Ps 51:3).  Yet, when I look upon the sins of our nation, I cringe: our affront to human life; the greed and corruption in so many areas of society; the elevation of an individual’s happiness as the greatest good; and the way that we, as a nation, have abandoned God. With that backdrop, if you read Ezekiel’s words below, you, like me, will shudder.

We know God is love, but we also know that God is just.  It is His justice, quite honestly, that causes me to tremble.

In His love, God provides our remedy in the second book of chronicles , “…if then my people, upon whom my name has been pronounced, humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their evil ways, I will hear them from heaven and pardon their sins and heal their land.”  (2 Chr 7:14)

Please join me in praying for our nation.

All we have is mercy!

O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!  Anne

The word of the LORD came to me: Son of man,
say to the prince of Tyre:
Thus says the Lord GOD:

Because you are haughty of heart,
you say, “A god am I!
I occupy a godly throne
in the heart of the sea!”–
And yet you are a man, and not a god,
however you may think yourself like a god.
Oh yes, you are wiser than Daniel,
there is no secret that is beyond you.
By your wisdom and your intelligence
you have made riches for yourself;
You have put gold and silver
into your treasuries.
By your great wisdom applied to your trading
you have heaped up your riches;
your heart has grown haughty from your riches?
therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
Because you have thought yourself
to have the mind of a god,
Therefore I will bring against you
foreigners, the most barbarous of nations.
They shall draw their swords
against your beauteous wisdom,
they shall run them through your splendid apparel. They shall thrust you down to the pit, there to die
a bloodied corpse, in the heart of the sea.
Will you then say, “I am a god!”
when you face your murderers?
No, you are man, not a god,
handed over to those who will slay you.
You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners,
for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD.  (Ez 28:10)