Joseph Mallord William Turner: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the Burning Fiery Furnace – Tate Museum, UK
Today we choose verses from this well-known and well-loved story.
None of us is exempt from trials in the fiery furnace. Some of us suffer greatly; some only a little. Nevertheless, pain comes to each and all of us. And so we pray that in our difficult days, we will turn – as these young men do – to the one who saves. We pray that the angel of the LORD – as God promises – accompanies us in our fiery ordeals. And we pray that – as Christ calls us to do – to muster our courage to step forward into the promise of life.
Shadrach! Meshach! Abednego! Servants of the Supreme God! Come out!
Visit the Tales from the Disapora posts on this blog for more reflections. Or enter the words Furnaceor Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego into the blog search bar.
This week as we move toward Palm Sunday, we spend time with each morning’s first reading for daily liturgy. Today we explore our hearts as we look at our commitment to our covenant with God.
We ask . . . Do I feel present to others in God’s love? How do I act on the promises I have made to God? How does God interact with me? How do I interact with others – both those who follow Christ and those who do not? Am I aware of The Law written within? And if not, what do I do to open myself to the Spirit?
It is interesting that at the close of this story, we see Xerxes and Mordecai as heroes, while Esther – for whom the book is named – slips into the background. This is, of course, indicative of the ancient world in which society regarded women as possessions rather than full persons. We might then determine that the more important message is this: God loves the faithful so well and so endlessly, that salvation arrives in a time if crisis.In our contemporary era of unease, we hear this message gladly. This is good news for those who are beleaguered in physical, emotional and spiritual ways. This is redemption for those who work at transformation. This is deliverance for those who suffer.
Living in exile, Esther keeps her Jewish heritage secret. As a woman with little influence in her own life, Esther moves quietly through Xerxes’ court, maintaining a low profile. Mordecai’s petition for her assistance pulls Esther out of anonymity and moves her into a life that requires courage, patience and wisdom; and we watch as she relies on God for these qualities.
We have much to learn from this young woman who allowed herself to be led by the source that created and called her. When do we speak up? Why do we remain silent? We have much to explore in her story of quiet obedience and patient trust. When do we question? Why do we follow?We have much to share about the wisdom of this brave young woman. When do we celebrate? Why do we rejoice?
Today we ask . . . what have we learned from Esther?
Tomorrow, Mordecai’s dream . . . Esther is the river.
Job understands the freedom God gives him to choose divinity, and it is the reason and foundation on which he stands. Job knows in his bones that he is good and that he suffers innocently, mysteriously. He knows nothing of the conversation that passed between Satan and God and still he persists in this endless and limitless hope. He expands his own horizons and rises above them. And it is in this expansion of his human self that he meets God. It is through his defense of his innocence against the false sympathy of colleagues that he rises to this divinity planted in him by God. He goes out of and beyond his former limits.
Fr. Alfred Delp, who died in a Nazi death camp, concludes . . . Human freedom is born in the moment of our contact with God. It is really unimportant whether God forces us out of our limits by the sheer distress of suffering, coaxes us with visions of beauty and truth, or pricks us into action by the endless hunger and thirst for righteousness that possess our soul. What really matters is that we are called and we must be sufficiently awake to hear the call.
As we move toward the season of Lent, we will want to spend time with Job to see how he stretches himself beyond his humanity to meet his divinity.
When we use the scripture link and the drop-down menus to explore the story of Job, we find wisdom, strength, courage, and the freedom to choose the gift of humanity offered to us by God.
Adapted from a reflection written on February 21, 2010.
Cameron, Peter John. “Meditation of the Day.” MAGNIFICAT. 21.2 (2010). Print.
Philistine captives being led away after their failed invasion of Egypt, from a relief at Ramses III’s mortuary temple at Medinet Habu, Thebes, Egypt. (Britannica online)
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
The stories in 1 and 2 Samuel are intriguing if we take the time to pause with them; and over the past weeks we have considered the variety of ways God speaks to us. We have paused to reflect on how we might hear, and then heed, God’s Word. Today it is the story of David, Achish, the Philistine King of Gath, and the Philistines.
Many of us perceive the Philistines as enemies of the Jewish people. As a noun describing characteristics, we define a philistine as “a:a person who is guided by materialism and is usually disdainful of intellectual or artistic values, or b: one uninformed in a special area of knowledge”. (Merriam Webster Online) No matter the context, we understand that David and his men align with Achish in order to somehow endure the wrath of Saul. And we further understand that the Philistine chieftains reject this small band who are trying to survive in a brutal world. The ancient order reflects our own as we too struggle to make and maintain alliances, as we look for connections and coalitions.
Archaeological findings at Gath
What might we learn from David’s dilemma today? That at times we are required to lie among the enemy. And at times even the enemy rejects us.
Many of us are familiar with the old Christmas carol, The Twelve Days of Christmas, and we may also be aware of varying theories about the derivation of the lyrics and tune. A number of resources report – some correctly and some incorrectly – the reason for the song’s origins, but in this holiday season we will put argument aside and enjoy celebrating the symbols we find.
The first gift is a partridge in a pear tree, and is symbolic of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The mother bird of this species will feign injury to lure predators away from her young, and some say that it reflects Jesus’s words when he laments in Luke 13:34: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets, you stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me!” (Snopes) Yesterday we reflected on Christ as our savior or Messiah and we recognize his willingness to endanger himself in order to save the faithful.
Two turtle doves in St. George Island, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Coale)
On this second day of Christmas, we celebrate the presence of Christ as Logos in both the Old and New Testaments. Footnotes tell us that here that John the Evangelist lays out the themes that develop as his Gospel continues: life, light, truth, the world, testimony, the pre-existence of Jesus, the incarnate Logos who is God’s revelation and his expression of his love for us. When we think of the stories we hear and read in this Gospel, we know for certain that God is calling us to be diverse, to tend to that diversity and to place our hope in this diversity – because it is in this diversity that the Spirit manifests itself best.
God, most especially in the person of Jesus, calls us to intimacy. God asks us to commune with one another in a way we think is impossible. God asks much of us, both also gifts us with much. In this Christmas season, let us consider the gift of Logos, God’s Word, to all of creation brought to us in the sacred scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.
“The Twelve Days of Christmas.” snopes.com, 17 Dec. 2017, www.snopes.com.
Includes notes from autumn of 2007. Posted on December 26, 2017.
We are sometimes caught up in a well-developed argument, following its false logic to a false end. We can be led astray by philosophy that seems flawless, by practices that seem good and righteous. Long held traditions, jazzy new jargon, worship of something other than God that seems to do no harm, cheating that no one knows about, vanity so puffed up it has become ridiculous. These are all ideas and practices that Paul warns the Colossians – and us – to guard against. He tells them – and us – that these little demons enter our lives subtly, when we are occupied with daily work, when we are succeeding, when we are happy. Yet, he continues, if we live ofand through and in Christ, we can easily identify and walk away from all these tempting worldly thoughts and devices.
We know that this letter was written to a congregation that Paul did not establish. (CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE, 318) The town of Colossae was having trouble disentangling itself from the cultic practices familiar to the people; they struggled against pagan teachings that Paul identifies as but “shadows” of the tenets brought to them by Christ. Epaphras, the man who founded the Christian church in Colossae, asks Paul’s help, and so the apostle writes this letter from prison. He wisely does not attempt to argue away against well-developed, long-held beliefs. Instead, he places Jesus before this little flock and allows the Spirit to work in their hearts. The Spirit works in our hearts as well. It enlightens our path that we might see the error of our own ways.
When we find ourselves struggling against a well-oiled, corrupt structure, we must turn our struggle over to Christ and allow him to give us courage.
When we find ourselves lost in the convolutions of a byzantine argument, we must turn our confusion over to the Spirit and allow her to give us the words we will use in witness.
When we find ourselves anxious about the state of the world and the kingdom of God being neglected, we must turn our anxiety over to God and allow God to instill in us the wisdom we will need to extract ourselves from the mire, to witness to the corruption, and to begin our intercessory prayer for those who choose to live in the darkness.
And we must remain in Christ’s light so that we might see our errors. And mend them.
The following are comments from a lecture I once heard on Jesus’ temptation. I do not remember the source but my scribbled notes indicate the haste with which I wrote. These ideas seem so true and on target.
Verse 3 – The devil is so clever that he knows to tempt Jesus inhis most important place – his spirituality.The lesson here for us is that the devil does not tempt us in big, overt, obvious ways; rather, he sidles into our lives carried in on the back of something both we and God find pleasing. This temptation is at once immediate, spectacular, and relevant.
Jesus replies with a quote from Deuteronomy 8:3 – Jesus, even though he is God, knows that the Creator alone gives and sustains life. Even Jesus obeys the Father.
Verse 6 – The devil is so clever that he tempts Jesus by offering him what he already is – the power of God.The lesson here for us is that the devil knows us so well that he knows our loves as well as our faults; and it is to the former that appeals, knowing that we will be less watchful. This temptation is bold, breathtaking, and daring.
Jesus replies with a quote from Deuteronomy 6:16 – Jesus understands that we are never alone, never abandoned by God. Jesus knows that there is no need to demand a sign from God.
Verse 9 – The devil is so clever that he tempts Jesus when he is at his best – praying in preparation for doing God’s work. The lesson here for us is that the devil will creep into our presence when we are at the top of our form and doing our best. This temptation is born of Satan’s envy, greed, and delight in havoc.
Jesus replies with a quote from Deuteronomy 6:13 – Jesus acts on his understanding of both God and Satan . . . and here Jesus rejects Satan soundly with the words we will hear him use again: Get away, Satan!
We tend to believe that the devil takes advantage of us when we are down, weakened, and at the ebb of our strength. It is true that when we are desperate we often lean further into descent rather than pulling ourselves out of the plummet into darkness. Yet here we see the opposite to be true. We are often susceptible to the devil’s clever ploys when we are happy perhaps even more than when we are depressed. When we are doing well we want to extend the happiness, we want to draw out this sense of independence and wellness. When we are doing God’s work with conviction and determination we feel full, complete and content; and this is when the clever demon slides into our thinking and into our lives – without our noticing.
Here Jesus has given us a blueprint for a well-executed rebuff of the devil – we are to rely on God alone, because even Jesus does not rely on his own strength. Even Jesus places his trust in God the Father.
Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him . . .
Paul explains here that faith has a way of saving us in a way that the Mosaic Law does not – and never will. It is impossible to reach heaven or to be one with God if we live a life full of checklists that attend to the duties prescribed by a structure. It is equally impossible to notbe saved if we live our lives inChrist if we live a life of actingaccording with the Law of Love – even when this Law puts us in danger.
Footnotes explain the references to Old Testament verses, and they also remind us that to speak as Paul does here – or to tell and enact the Gospel story as Paul reminds us we are asked to do – often puts us in danger.
In the first century, and in certain parts of the world today, being Christian brings exclusion from the wider society and even the death penalty. We will need to rely on Christ once we respond to the call to tell the story of salvation.
Among many cliques and groups both now and in Paul’s day, living a life of faith brings scorn and derision. We will need to rely on Christ once we commit to living a life of fidelity to Jesus’ Way.
In families, work places, schools, and any places where we humans gather, living a life of merciful justice and open trust brings ridicule and disdain. We will need to rely on Christ once we live as fully in him as he asks.
Paul warns us about all of this today. The easy, comfortable life spent in and for itself must fall away. The disciplined life of service that we are called to live is not appealing to rebellious and difficult people. And so we have this clear choice before us: to opt for contention and disobedience, or to choose freedom and salvation in Christ.
The Noontimes 