Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, bishop and martyr

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/062812.cfm 



O God, the nations have come into your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple,they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.They have given the corpses of your servants as food to the birds of heaven, the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.


The scripture once again recalls the rape of Jerusalem, when the Babylonian army leveled the city and exported its inhabitants. Only the poorest of the poor, the apparently useless human beings who had no particular skills, education or standing -- "the meek of the earth" -- were left to inherent the ruined city. I suppose they were the ones we see standing on street corners and sleeping  under bridges in our own ruined cities. 


This tragedy is, in a sense, the "crucifixion" of the Old Testament. From that time on Jews would be a nationless people; even those who returned to the city when Babylon fell to the Persian Empire were subjects of a foreign power. Although the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been captured and depopulated before Jerusalem fell, we date the diaspora from this incident. 


Unlike the crucifixion of Jesus, the fall of Jerusalem was not overwhelmed by a tsunami of blessings. There has been no resurrection for the Jews, although they have survived in many places, and prospered in some. Many in the 19th century hoped the Nation of Israel, established in 1948, would signal that rebirth of  the Jewish faith and tradition, but it has only taken its place in the perpetually troubled sea of the near-East. 


I sometimes wonder if our whole planet is doomed to suffer a similar fate. There will be no foreign invasion from outer space -- I don't espouse such nonsense -- but we seem headed for a train wreck. 


I wish I could believe that the nations of the earth, led by the United States, will come to their senses and make changes in the way we handle our precious resources. But our leaders -- Americans in particular -- seem intent on wrenching every cent of profit from the Earth. Every time the price of gasoline goes up people rush out and buy small cars; and when it goes back down they rush out and buy the big ones again. Democracy may be the best form of government in times of plenty and prosperity, but the last thirty years have shown its inability to make sacrifices during the hard times.


The via dolorosa of Earth and its resources, along with its billions of impoverished people, must continue until something truly apocalyptic happens – or incredibly gracious.As tempting as it might be, we must not despair. Hope is a power that changes by moving people like you and me to make a difference; and we make a difference by being different. We don’t buy the gas guzzlers; we live simply and seek continually simpler ways. Since our treasure is God we can renounce the delightful things that beguile others; we are satisfied with enough and, often, with less than enough. 



Our faith discovers endless resourcefulness because it is rooted in the mysterious depths of God. I certainly cannot imagine how God will rescue us from the American way of life that has spread like a contagion to the ends of the earth, but I am ready to see a rebirth of wonder.