Something to Remember 19

I just finished reading Jeremiah. I've been wanting to read it for the longest time but it was often difficult for me to finish because of the type of language used and I wasn't as knowledgeable of the entire context of Jewish culture before. I wanted to read it because I knew it had a pretty good story of how a young man is called by God to serve in the most difficult way possible.

Some of the main lessons and themes I got from reading it:
(1) God calls us the day we were conceived (or even before). It was a matter for us to decide when to actually listen to that call.

"The Word of the Lord came to me thus:
'Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,
before you were born I dedicated you,
a prophet to the nations I appointed you.'"

Often times, when we hear the call, we are afraid, perhaps rightfully so, because we are aware of our weaknesses.

"'Ah Lord God!' I said, 'I know not how to speak; I am too young'"

But when the Lord calls us, He promises to help us be the person we need to be to serve Him.

"But the Lord answered me, 'Say not, "I am too young"
to whomever I send you, you shall go;
whatever I command you, you shall speak,
have no fear before them,
because I am with you to deliver you', says the Lord"
- Jeremiah 1:4-8

It was a difficult vocation to be a prophet during Jeremiah's time. Israel and Judah were undergoing radical changes mainly because the nation was subscribing to the cultures and with it, the religion, of the world powers surrounding it. To speak for God was to fight the powers-that-be and to persuade a stubborn society to change itself to escape a doom that was its own doing.

And yet Jeremiah answered, proclaiming the prophesy of Israel's doom, her sins against God and prescribing a way to salvation. It was confusing to read the book at first because it seemed like the lamentations against Israel were being said multiple times in that 44 chapter book. But I realized after, this was a prophet that lasted three reigns of the kings of Israel, from Josiah to the last one during the Babylonian occupation. He never tired of doing God's will and though it was with great hurt that he was speaking of the doom of Israel, he did so courageously, even in the face of persecution and death.

(2) It was also difficult for me at the beginning to reconcile how the God of love of the New Testament, who sent His only Son to finally bring us all back to Him, could be so vengeful, so angry and so unforgiving. Imagine having children and feeding them to the lions. God was telling His chosen people, because you have forsaken Me, I will let Assyria and Babylon lay waste to you. And then after it had come to pass, He tells them I will help you rebuild your lives. And when they rebel again, siding with the Egyptians when God explicitly tells them to serve the Babylonians, He allows the destruction of their nation. It was an interesting thing to see God exacting justice we humans can easily understand.

But I think the book was sharing a different point on God's justice. Certainly, God was not happy that His people was turning His back on Him. But the point wasn't God punishing those who choose to denounce His love, but that He was a stern Father teaching His children humility. The mere fact of God conversing with His people through Jeremiah is sign enough of His love for Him. Of course, given the understanding of God at that time, we see a vengeful and spiteful God reminiscent of the gods of Greek mythology. But I think beyond the cultural differences, the main message of Jeremiah is that God was concerned for His people and that He allows justice to be dealt upon them to teach them humility.

The Israelites were a stubborn and proud people. If you read the entire Old Testament, you'll probably see a pattern of God getting angry and then Him getting angry at the oppressors of His people, the same ones He unleashed upon them. But what is more fruitful to look at was the cycle of Israel's attitude with God. At times, they were a faithful people, but when they reached the zenith of prosperity, they forget their roots, turn to the ways of their affluent neighbors (which inevitably includes religious practices) and in a way, forget the God that brought them that prosperity in the first place. I can imagine that by taking away that comfortable life, God reminds His people that it was He that brought them out of slavery from Egypt, and that it was in Him only can they live prosperous and peaceful lives. God is faithful, that is why He does not allow His people to fall so far away from Him.

We should look to ourselves and consider if we are growing too proud of ourselves that we forget the Source of everything that is.

(3) A final thought that is liberating. For all the freedom we've been granted, we achieve our ultimate potential not in a world we create for ourselves but, paradoxically, by surrendering ourselves to the will of God.

"You know, O Lord that man is not master of his way. Man's course is not within his choice, nor is for him to direct his step."
- Jeremiah 10:23

Have a blessed Maundy Thursday. :)
Today is special in the life of the Church because 2000 years ago, Jesus instituted the Sacraments of the Eucharist and the Holy Orders. How did He actually do it? It was simple really: He washed the feet of His disciples and shared a meal with them.
Truly, God is the God of both the simple and the grand. :)