Breaking the Word

19^th Week in Ord. Time, Tuesday – 13^th August 2024 – Ezekiel 2,8-3,4; Mt 18,1-5,10-14

Vision to be God’s Messenger

In the first reading, Ezekiel begins his ministry as a prophet through the vision of the scroll. He is called to be God’s spokesperson, like Jeremiah and Isaiah. In the first place, he is called to listen carefully to what God has to say and not to be like the people who are rebellious and disobedient. Then, the prophet is asked to take the scroll of God’s Word and consume it. He is not asked to read and know it, but to eat and devour it, so that it becomes a part of him. Following the Lord’s instructions, Ezekiel eats the scroll. When Isaiah was being called by Yahweh, his mouth had been touched by a seraph. In the case of Jeremiah, Yahweh had put his words into the prophet’s mouth. Here Ezekiel uses this graphic image to show how God’s word becomes part of him, in order to share with the people of Israel. Unlike most ancient scrolls, it is written on both sides. The implication is that it is totally filled with God’s word and God’s judgment on his people. Like Jeremiah, Ezekiel’s mission was first to communicate God’s displeasure with his people and to warm them of their faithfulness. Later on, again like Jeremiah, he will preach a message of hope.

19^th Week in Ord. Time, Monday – 12^th August 2024 – Ezekiel 1,2-5.24-28; Mt 17,22-27

Visions of Glory

The first reading from the book of Ezekiel presents the vision of the glory of God in heaven. He is the first prophet to proclaim God’s Word outside Jerusalem. He begins his prophetic work while being an exile in Babylon. His prophecies reveal his powerful experience of God revealing himself in visions. It is expressed in the oft repeated phrase … “the hand of the Lord was on him there.” (1,3; 3,22; 37,1) The symbols at the opening of the vision speak of the presence and power of God: the stormy wind, the great cloud surrounded by light, the fire with flashes of lighting. However, the exiles are lamenting the fact that they no longer can go to the Temple and be in the presence of God. He tells the people that the glory of God is not limited to the temple in Jerusalem, but the glory of God is also in God’s abode in heaven. Ezekiel’s vision presents both positive and negative experiences. It is meant to reassure the exiles that God’s glory still exists and is even better than their previous experience in the Jerusalem Temple. It is also the prelude to Ezekiel’s prophecy of the complete destruction of the Jerusalem Temple.