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I am not
my brother's keeper!
How easy it is to give up on someone.
If not outwardly, then in our heart and mind.
I remember when I was asked by someone, Where is the Pastor??? I would jokingly respond with...I am not my brother's keeper.
But wait just a minute. We are all our brother's and sister's keeper. Our Christianity makes that clear.
The readings of this Sunday give us a look at what it means to be Christian.
In the first reading Ezekiel is in Exile in Babylon and as God's prophet he is instructed to make God present for His people.
In our baptism we were called by God to be a prophet, to make God present to others.
Sometimes the first thing to do is not just use words or to tell someone about God's love.
Perhaps the first response is example; is mercy, compassion, understanding, patience, etc.
I think we all know that our actions speak louder than our words. But words can be so much easier and then we can dismiss the person or the event and move on with our life, thinking we made God present.
Paul, in the reading of the letter to the Romans that we hear today, says it clearly. Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another.
Love does not say, I am not my brother or sister's keeper, because through our baptism we are that keeper of all we meet and encounter everyday.
Sometimes those encounters see impossible ,and we want to say that I am not responsible, but I am according to my call to be prophet.
For 50 some years Ezekiel was prophet. We too from the moment of our Baptism are called as a prophet for all humanity
We never know how God wants to communicate with us through the events in our life.
I know it is through looking back on difficult situations or people that I see my sin of thinking I am not responsible. But I am. I am called to love, even the enemy. When I can see this in myself, what a gift from God.
Please Lord, help me to love as Christ.
I think the Gospel has a warning for me, not to dismiss people or difficult situations too quickly. Patience, mercy, compassion.
Jesus never gave up on sinners. We too need to come to see that is also our call ; it is a call to love and not just give up on someone, or for that matter, to give up on ourselves.
It is interesting that in the primitive Church when a brother or sister sinned big, it was only as a last resort were they romoved from the community, but they were never abandoned or forgotten.
The community continued day and night to pray for them to repent and return to their call as prophet.
Perhaps quickly getting rid of someone, of putting them out of mind, means we do not have to look at ourselves and our inability, at that moment, to be my brother's or sister's keeper and miss the opportunity to see my sin and to pray for my own conversion, to be able to love all.
Or do I insist that ...
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