Tag: Jeremiah

Mark 4:37-41: A Great Calm
Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Eugène Delacroix: Christ on the Sea of Galilee

Mark 4:37-41

A Great Calm

As we move through Jeremiah’s prophecy we may feel as though we are tossed by a violent squall, our little ship of life rolling up and down thundering waves. When we feel swamped, we panic. When lightning flashes, our spirit fades. Looking for a break in the cloud cover or searching for the slightest sign of sunlight from beyond the glowering clouds, we might feel as the apostles did when they called out: Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?

A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up.

Our personal and public lives are jammed with the minutiae of a modern life. Newsfeeds, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, the Blogosphere all fill our waking and sleeping thoughts whether consciously or subconsciously. Friendly resources have become too much information, but turning off the inflow only serves to isolate us. And we are filling up. Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?

We look for a leader who will solve the world’s problems. We look for the seer who might tell us how to maneuver the difficulties we see looming like the giant waves of the storm-tossed sea. We look for the teacher who will show us wisdom.

Jesus rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be still!”

We look for the pill that will ease our tension. We look for the possession that will fulfill our need. We look for the status that will give us security.

The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”

In struggling with the details we miss the bigger picture. In cutting down the saplings we miss the enormous trees. We upbraid ourselves and others for all that is lacking only to miss all that is there.

They were filled with great awe and said to one another, “Who then is this whom even the wind and sea obey?”

Let us also be filled with awe at the impossible that God brings into our lives. Let us also be filled with wonder at the mystery and beauty of God’s love. Let us nourish the gift of faith we are given – no matter how small or struggling. When we flounder, let us sing out to the Teacher that we are perishing. When we are full of anxiety or fear, let us be ready to hear God’s word: Quiet! Be still! Why are you terrified? I am the one whom even the wind and the sea obey.

And let us be prepared for the great calm that will always follow the violent squall.

Enter the word storm into the blog search bar and reflect on the times that God has quieted the squalls of our lives.

Images from: http://www.wikiart.org/en/eugene-delacroix/christ-on-the-sea-of-galilee-1854 and http://the3rs.mlblogs.com/tag/dustin-pedroia/
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August 25, 2021

faith, God’s love, Jeremiah, storm
Jeremiah 26:16-24: Saving Jeremiah
Sunday, August 22, 2021

The Prophet Jeremiah after Rembrandt

Jeremiah 26:16-24

Saving Jeremiah

Thereupon the princes and all of the people said to the priests and the prophets, “This man does not deserve death, it is in the name of the Lord, our God, that he speaks to us”.

Each of us has likely experienced loss of friendship and perhaps even ridicule in either a private or public way. If we have not, it is likely that we know someone who has. Today we pause to reflect on the consequence of keeping silent when we know a lie is spoken as truth. Whistleblowers from all cultures and walks of life will recognize this story. Let us explore Jeremiah the man to see what his persistent, compelling love for God brings to us millennia after his words were recorded.

Jeremiah has been ridiculed, punished, mocked and finally condemned to death. Scholars tell us that we are uncertain as to his fate and you may want to visit one of the sites listed below to explore the mystery of this man.

The princes and the people versus the priests and the prophets. How do we see this drama played out today in our own families, in our own neighborhoods, in our own workplaces? Who are the factions and for what, of whom, do they stand? Take a bit of time and explore the story of Jeremiah. You may find that it is very like your own.

Click on the image above for a post entitled “Are We Too Negative?” by Dave Hunt, or go to: http://acrookedpath.com/2012/08/14/are-we-too-negative-by-dave-hunt-part-i/

Visit the sites below to explore the Jeremiah in each of us.

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/464029/jewish/The-Prophet-Jeremiah.htm

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/302676/Jeremiah

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Summer_Holidays/Tishah_B_Av/Jeremiah/jeremiah.html
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August 22, 2021

Jeremiah, whistleblowers
Daniel 9:13-19: Prayer in the Desert
Saturday, February 20, 2021

Daniel 9:13-19

Prayer of Penitence – In the Desert

Eugene Alexis Girardet: Prayer in the Desert

In today’s Noontime we ponder Daniels’s famous penitential prayer on behalf of the community. On the Eve of the first Sunday in Lent, we might reflect on three passages that complement today’s from Daniel. Ezra 9:6-15 and Nehemiah 1:5-11 and 9:6-37. In this story, both priest and administrator rebuild the Jerusalem temple after Cyrus allows the Jewish people to return from exile. They have been told that their exile will last not 70 weeks or 70 years as was foretold by the prophet Jeremiah. No, they receive word that their captivity will end in seven times seventy or in 490 years. This is gloomy news until we begin to understand that this is precisely the amount of time until the arrival of Jesus.

The HARPER COLLINS COMMENTARY tells us that this prayer we read today is not seen so much as a petition from the people which God obeys but rather as an appropriate act of piety from a people who have erred and disobeyed. It is for this reason that it is best to find others who will pray this together with us as an admission of our collective willfulness, waywardness and disobedience. (Mays 631)

And let us pray Daniel’s prayer much as the Jewish community prayed with Ezra and Nehemiah when they returned to their ruined city.

God of Heaven, God of Earth, Spirit Dwelling Among Us,

Guide us . . . and grant us the faith to follow,

Be glad in us . . . and grant us the hope to rejoice in you,

Love us . . . and grant us the grace to grow in you.

We wish to turn . . . we wish to return to you.

For you are the beginning, the end, the all.

We are your servants.

May we serve you well.

Amen.

Mays, James L., ed. HARPERCOLLINS BIBLE COMMENTARY. New York, New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1988. 631. Print.

Images from: https://fineartamerica.com/featured/tent-in-the-desert-the-prayer-detail-eugene-alexis-girardet.html and http://annebender.blogspot.com/2013/07/three-things-i-love-about-catholicism.html

Adapted from a reflection written on February 17, 2008.
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February 20, 2021

9:6-37, Ash Wednesday, desert, exile, Ezra 9:6-15, Jeremiah, Jesus, King Cyrus, Nehemiah 1:5-11 and 9:6-37, penitence, rebuilding Jerusalem
Psalm 32:5: Admission
Friday, October 16, 2020

Psalm 32:5

Admission

At last I admitted to you that I had sinned; no longer concealed my guilt, I said, “I will go to Yahweh and confess my fault. And you, you have forgiven the wrong I did, have pardoned my sin.

When we are in the wrong we sense that a huge ogre stands outside our door if we even begin to admit that we have erred. And when we finally open the door of the soul to enter into an honest conversation with God we find that the imagined ogre is less than an inch in height. We have been held hostage by our own imaginings that festered in the dark silence of our troubled hearts.

God says: Do you see why I have been calling at your closed door for so long into the night? I want to bring you out of the corner in which you have been crouching. Your sins are never too great for me to forgive. Your transgressions are always smaller than the love with which I heal. Do you know that the conversation I am waiting to have with you will bring you more joy than pain? Do you remember that my prophet Jeremiah has told you that I have plans for you, plans for your joy and not woe? Do you recall that my prophet Isaiah predicted that I would walk among you as the light? Do you not hear my voice on the other side of that closed door – the voice that encourages you? Do you not feel the love I send to you through the closed thickness that separates us? Open the door. Answer my call. And allow me to fold you in to the immense love of my sacred heart.

We say that we seek God when all the while God is seeking us. We say that we look for serenity when all the while God offers us peace. We say that we have nothing to confess when all the while our troubled thoughts weigh heavily on our hearts and minds and souls. And all the while . . . God awaits our simple admission with a healing touch and a generous heart.

Enter the words sacred heart, forgiveness, or God’s love into the blog search bar and explore the many ways God persists in calling us to union.

Images from: http://thepostmodernpastor.com/2011/03/10/40-days-the-heart-of-god-rev-elaine-burleigh/ and http://www.37days.com/2012/04/poets-love-the-intangible.html/light-under-door
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October 16, 2020

God’s love, healing, Isaiah, Jeremiah, sacred heart
Baruch 2:27-35: Warm Hearts and Heedful Ears
Monday, September 7, 2020

Baruch 2:27-35

Warm Hearts and Heedful Ears

Baruch, secretary to the prophet Jeremiah, sets down his thoughts in poetry and prose. Today we reflect with him on God’s promises recalled.

God says: For I know they will not heed me, because they are a stiff-necked people. But in the land of their captivity they shall have a change of heart; they shall know that I, the Lord, am their God. I will give them hearts and heedful ears; and they shall praise me in the land of their captivity, and shall invoke my name. Then they shall turn back from their stiff-necked stubbornness, and from their evil deeds . . .

Not much has changed about the human race since ancient days; we are still a stubborn and stiff-necked people who are reluctant to heed God’s word. We harden our hearts so that we do not feel another’s pain. We hold hard opinions to cover our fear. We exclude those on the margin with the easy argument that our own hard work has brought us prosperity. Our stubbornness brings us to the captivity of our fears where we perhaps finally have a change of heart and listen for God’s word.

We so often complain about what is wrong with the world when we spread rumors, stir up rancor, and add to the negativity that we so heavily criticize. So let us recall God’s promises and look to improve ourselves rather than others. Let us praise God even though we may be held captive by our fears. Let us open our own ears and soften our own hearts.L et us invoke God’s name and let us turn back from our stiff-necked stubbornness and our own dark deeds.

And let us re-discover God’s gift to us of open, warm hearts and eager, heedful ears.

To learn more about softening hard hearts, click on the heart image above or go to: http://mindsightcoaching.com/softening-the-heart/

For some practical hints on how to listen well, click on the image of the ear or go to: http://christopherwitt.com/how-to-improve-your-listening-skills/
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September 7, 2020

Jeremiah, stiff necks and hard hearts
Daniel 9: Gabriel and the Seventy Weeks
Daniel 9: Gabriel and the Seventy Weeks

Sunday, November 17, 2019

“I was still occupied with this prayer when Gabriel came to me in rapid flight”.
“A pressing theological question asserts itself. Does the writer of Daniel think God’s purpose in bringing history to its end can be changed merely by uttering human prayers?” (Mays 631-632) Commentary will enlighten this passage for us further but if time is brief today we might reflect on this one question: How do we react when we discover that a period of trial will last longer than we had first believed? How do we manage pain that endures not seventy years but seven times that number? Do we reject God in anger or do we go to God in faith? Do we sink into private despair or do we turn to God in universal hope? Do we lash out against those who bring us truth or do we react in love . . . even toward our enemies? What do we do when we find out that our seventy years of pain are seven times that number? How do we endure?

Daniel provides us with a model, a plan, a pattern we can follow when we receive the news that life is a string of trials interspersed with little triumphs. Chapter 9 lays out a simple map.

I turned to the Lord, pleading an earnest prayer . . . We turn to God and pour our fears into God’s ear. We tell him our worries with honesty. We do not hide any of the details for God already knows them.

With fasting, sackcloth, and ashes . . . We make an outward sign to our inward selves that we have given over all control to God. We put aside all pride. We place ourselves fully into God’s hands for God already holds us firmly.

I prayed to the Lord my God, and confessed . . . We enter into an open and straightforward dialog with God. We say all that is on our minds, all that weighs down our hearts. We admit that we have erred and have sometimes adored false idols.

And we can turn to God because God is good. We can be truthful with God because God is forgiving. We can put away our fears, our defenses and our weapons because God is love.

Know and understand this . . . Jerusalem was to be rebuilt . . .

When we discover that our suffering will not be ending when we first believed it would . . . we can follow Daniel’s model and remember that God always loves, God is always present, God always forgives and welcomes his tired ones home. God does, indeed, respond to human prayer . . . and he sends his messenger to bring us the news that God is with us.

More notes on Daniel 9: “The prophet Jeremiah (25,11; 29,10) prophesied a Babylonian captivity of seventy years, a round number signifying the complete passing away of the existing generation. Jeremiah’s prophecy was fulfilled in the capture of Babylon by Cyrus and the subsequent return of the Jews to Palestine. However, the author of Daniel, living during the persecution of Antiochus, sees the conditions of the exile still existing; therefore in his mediation, he extends Jeremiah’s number to seventy weeks of years (v 24); i.e., seven times seventy years, to characterize the Jewish victory over the Seleucids as the ultimate fulfillment of the prophecy”. (Senior cf. 2, 1100-1101)

To re-visit our reflections on other portions of Daniel 9: We begin with Daniel seeking Ultimate Fulfillment in God; Daniel intones a Prayer in the Desert; then suddenly Gabriel Comes to Daniel in rapid flight. A vision ensues through which Daniel understands that an end will come to the anguish he and his exiled nation suffer . . . but this end is further off than anticipated.

To read more about this prophecy, go to the Daniel – God Calls the Faithful and Faithless page on this blog.

Mays, James L., ed. HARPERCOLLINS BIBLE COMMENTARY. New York, New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1988. 631-632. Print.

Senior, Donald, ed. THE CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE. New York, Oxford University Press, 1990.1100-1101. Print.

A re-post from October 27, 2012.
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November 17, 2019

Antiochus, Cyrus, forgiveness, God is love, Jeremiah, Jerusalem, Seleucids
Jeremiah 39:15-18: A Gesture of Comfort
Rembrandt: Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem
Jeremiah 39:15-18: A Gesture of Comfort

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Even among the twists and turns in the tangled web of intrigue which surround Jeremiah’s life, this prophet remains true to his God. Both his words and actions reveal his total devotion to the Lord, and his life – like the flight of a well-aimed arrow – arcs through turbulent history to blaze a path as safe passageway for the faithful to follow. No one, after reading this man’s story, can say that their burden is too weighty to carry. Anyone can see – from Jeremiah’s story – that tragedy and loss are not always a bad thing. We frequently find redemption in the ashes of failure. But we must be open to the belief that all is possible through God. We must demonstrate trust.

Today finds us at a point in Jeremiah’s story where he is rewarded by the invaders for maintaining his fidelity to God. In the midst of horror comes a gesture of comfort. Horrible events spin around Jeremiah. The king and his sons have been captured by Nebuchadnezzar’s troops. Zedekiah’s eyes have been put out, his sons have been executed. The palace has been burned; the walls of the city are demolished; the deportation to Babylon has begun. Jeremiah will be given permission to live where he likes – with the exiled or with the remnant. A time of respite is upon him.

We do not know precisely where or how or when Jeremiah eventually dies; but one thing we know for certain is that he will remain as true to his God in his end days as we see him today. Jeremiah will be rescued as he is always rescued.

Although there are times when we sit in the mud of the cistern of life, we too, are always rescued. A word of comfort pierces the darkness. A gesture of healing staunches a bleeding wound. The sign of peace arrives at our door. We know we are blessed.

In these graced moments amid life’s battles, we might pause to give thanks for such a healing and loving God. All God asks in payment is our trust.

Written on October 20, 2008 and posted today as a Favorite.

For more on this prophet and his prophecy, see the Jeremiah – Person and Message page on this blog at: https://thenoontimes.com/the-book-of-our-life/the-old-testament/the-prophets/jeremiah-person-and-message/
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November 10, 2019

cistern, healing, Jeremiah, Nebuchadnezzar, possibilities, trust, turmoil