New hearth

Reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel

            The Lord spoke to me as follows: “The son of man, the house of Israel lived in his land, and defiled it with his behavior and his deeds. Therefore I poured out my wrath upon them: because of the blood they shed on the earth, and defiled it with their idols. I have scattered them among the nations, and they are scattered throughout the countries. According to their behavior and their deeds, I condemned them.

            They went among the nations, and wherever they went, they shamed my holy name because they said, ‘This is the people of the Lord, and he must have come out of his land.’

            And I care about my holy name, which has shamed the house of Israel among the nations to which they came.

            Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God: I will not do for you, the house of Israel;

            I will sanctify my great name, dishonored among the nations that you have defamed in the midst of them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, when I show to you before their eyes that I am holy, says the Lord God.

            I will take you from among the nations, gather you from all countries, and lead you to my own country. Then I pour out clean water on you and you will be cleansed of all dirt. I will cleanse you of all your idols.

            I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove the stone heart from your body and give you the heart of flesh. I will put my spirit in you and cause you to follow my command, to observe and fulfill my sayings.

            You will dwell in the land I have given to your fathers, you will be my people, and I will be your God. ”

Ez 36: 16-17. 18-28
            This reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel is extremely harsh. The Prophet first describes the punishment and the causes of punishment by which God punished His people. For the blood they shed and for the idols I will scatter them on the ground. But what did he accomplish? A change of mind? Not. Only He himself came into the evil light: “Wherever they got, they shamed my holy name, for they said, ‘This is the people of the Lord and must have come out of his land.'” He himself proved incapable. For he cannot bring up the people. If we see a rude child, we ask, “Whose are you?” “Who is your father?” If we see a mess in the house, we say, “This house has no master!” What kind of God is he who knows what he is to scatter his people because he has not mastered his upbringing?

            That said, we are the face of God. God is judged by how His people behave, by how we live. We know that God cannot be refused. Only the false image of God can be rejected. Therefore, if one rejects God, one has to ask him what the God he does not want. It is quite likely that after his reply we will tell him: “You are right, I would not believe in such a God. But God is different! ”

            What is my image of God? What did my parents give me? What have I experienced in the family where I come from, the parish where I grew up?

            But Ezekiel continues. It continues with a surprising statement. Indeed, we would expect a solomon solution in which God purifies his name, but at the same time punishes his people exemplary and shows him his nakedness. Instead, we hear words of hope: “I will take you from among the nations, gather you from all countries, and lead you to my own country. Then I pour out clean water on you and you will be cleansed of all dirt. I will cleanse you of all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove the stone heart from your body and give you the heart of flesh. I will put my spirit in you and cause you to follow my command, to observe and fulfill my sayings. ”

            There is the announcement of salvation that comes through Jesus Christ and the announcement of baptism, through which we will be purified and renewed. There is a beautiful picture of the heart that will change. From a stone heart to a heart of meat. But there’s one moment that doesn’t let me sleep. If God decided to show his love for us more effectively and convincingly, if He decided to purify us and renew our hearts, how is it possible that the outcome is still the same and that is the people’s unbelief? Does this not again give rise to doubts about God’s ability to carry out His plan of salvation?

            Imagine a person sick of heart. He lives but lives in constant tension. Failure can come at any time. As other illnesses progress and one sees the end coming, heart failure is the moment. It comes out in the morning and does not return in the evening. She runs to the lawn and just takes it away. Such a person, waiting for a heart transplant, is actually waiting for someone to die. Someone must die to live. However, if a suitable donor is found and the transplant succeeds, it is still uncertain whether the patient will accept the heart.

        Similarly, with the sacrament. This is guaranteed by the death of our Lord. If the sacrament is retired, it is always valid. But to what extent it yields fruit depends on how my heart’s soil is prepared. I will accept grace by receiving the sacrament, but without my consent, that grace cannot work and therefore cannot transform me. For the sacrament enables me to live what I am invited to live. No longer to live by one’s own strength, not to rely on one’s own abilities, but to be guided by grace.

            We have already received many graces from the Lord. What fruit does this grace bring? Of course, this question is not to be a hammer for us, it is not to support our hopelessness, but we are invited to motivate us. Each of us has already gone through that path and each of us longs to continue on this path. That’s why you’re here. Otherwise you would probably spend this time differently. This question should motivate us to find ways to work with grace. To motivate us to listen to the low voice that the Lord speaks to us. And which shows us where and how to go.