Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest

Lectionary: 451

Ezra prayed: "My God, I am too ashamed and confounded to raise my face to you, O my God, for our wicked deeds are heaped up above our heads and our guilt reaches up to heaven. From the time of our fathers even to this day great has been our guilt, and for our wicked deeds we have been delivered up, we and our kings and our priests, to the will of the kings of foreign lands, to the sword, to captivity, to pillage, and to disgrace, as is the case today.



The particular genius of the Jewish tradition, as Christians have received it, is their collective willingness to acknowledge their sins against God and make atonement for them. The Hebrew prophets saw in catastrophes like drought, famine and war the punishing hand of God. When hostile armies approached they urged all the people to atone for their sins before it was too late. Atonement came with righteous acts toward widows, orphans and aliens; and with religious ceremonies carefully executed. Neither should be neglected. 
Ezra's prayer in today's first reading reflects the "care" the people should take in their rituals. The priest Ezra does not speak only for himself; what would be the point of that? Rather, he speaks on behalf of the whole nation. 
The next chapter assures us, "While Ezra prayed and acknowledged their guilt, weeping and prostrate before the house of God, a very large assembly of Israelites gathered about him, men, women, and children; and the people wept profusely.
However, the footnotes in this translation (NABRE) suggest the reform didn't go as smoothly as promised. The non-Jewish wives did not agree to its terms. Perhaps the silence of the Bible about that reform's indifferent conclusion should remind us of how complicated repentance and atonement really are. 
Black Lives Matter has confronted Americans again with that conundrum. The dominant culture would like to believe the Civil War is over! But when historians still disagree about why the war was fought -- slavery or states rights -- we can hardly expect racism to have disappeared.
American Christians also disagree sharply about how we should regard our "fellow man." Many Americans are called "illegal aliens," with the implication that crossing man-made boundaries without a visa is immoral and sinful, even when the individual is seeking employment to support spouse, children and parents. Only some Christians, especially Catholics, are willing to defend the rights of immigrants. 
During the Civil War Christians of North and South hoped that the "baptism of blood" would purify the nation; but, after Appomattox racism persisted and slavery went underground, hiding under various legal pretexts. 
The indifferent conclusion of Ezra and Nehemiah's reform should at least remind us that we do penance daily. Once is never enough. Just as we bathe several times a week and eat several times a day, we must acknowledge our sins and repent seven times a day. We must continually ask the Lord, "What is the next step?" A chess master may know the next several moves against a weak opponent, but no one knows the next step toward a more perfect union. 
Black lives matter! Yes! They matter to me! Now what should I do?