Saturday April 4, 2009 of the Fifth week in Lent

Saturday April 4, 2009 of the Fifth week in Lent
Ezekiel 37: 21-28 Jeremiah 31: 10-13 John 11: 45-56
“The Lord will guide us , as a shepherd guards his flock”

Writing from exile in Babylon, Ezekiel prophesizes about the New Jerusalem!
Were we to read the words literally, it would seem he is telling the exiles they would be brought back to the Temple and be reinstated as their own leaders, with David as their king once again. The future for them was cut in stone.
They were indeed rescued by God and returned to the land of Israel/Jacob. However, their apostasy brought them back under foreign rule and when David’s son Jesus came among them as the prince they wanted, they not only disdained Him, they killed Him. Unwittingly, they executed God’s plan and we are the New Jerusalem, the Church.
As in the time of Ezekiel when the perpetuity of God’s covenant was proclaimed, if we continue down the path of excess and deviltry, we shouldn’t be surprised if some other people are selected by God to adore Him and properly serve Him as He has designed.

We are all aware of the fickleness of sheep! They’ll usually stick like glue to their shepherd. However, if another were to entice them with what they want, they’ll leave in a second to follow wherever he may lead as long as they are provided for Although God’s promises are never altered; the recipients of the promises change the rules and are left to their own devices.

How convenient the prophecy of Ezekiel should have such commonality with Caiaphas.
It was the tradition, at the time, the High Priest serving his term was gifted, by God, with the power to foresee. Here, Caiaphas was recognized as the spokesman for God and the rest of the Sandhedrin sort of fell in step with what he had to say. So, they plotted to have Jesus brought before them with trumped up charges and condemn Him to death. In His death, not only would He bring civil peace to the nation, He would fulfill the promise of God to bring all the people back to Jerusalem as Ezekiel foresaw years ago.

Our Pope doesn’t often resort to using his office to proclaim a Dogma. However, he is empowered with the guidance of the Holy Spirit to speak for God with regard to Faith and Morals. Our present Pope, Benedict XVI uses the media and encyclicals to proclaim his take on current phenomena. The forces of death often present solutions to problems without regard to the ramifications to those who have no spokesperson to defend their right to life.
We are needed to make his voice heard, when all else seems to offer sense, when in reality it’s nonsense!