Isaiah 22:15-25: Denunciation
Saturday, March 15, 2025
Adapted from a Favorite written on September 11, 2009.
At times we are called to rebuke one another. At times we are rebuked by our sisters and brothers. Most of us steer clear of conflict when we can. Some of us relish conflict; it gives us a place to hide from our own troubles. Others do not like conflict but engage in it when they feel they must, answering God’s calls to a particular place or person. Today we read about people being denounced for their dishonesty. This is a familiar portion of Isaiah often referenced as Jesus gathers the lost sheep lead astray by corrupt leaders.
There is a huge difference between self-examination and seeking self. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus makes this clear to us as he tells the parable of the blind leading the blind. In this story he asks us to look at the splinter of wood in our neighbor’s eye after we remove the beam from our own (Luke 6:39-42). He calls us to the difficult task of opening our hearts for healing, of making ourselves available for discipleship, of looking out for the common good before our own.
We always seem to forget that we need not fuss about all that is around us when we first make room in each day for Christ to enter into our thoughts and actions. Some of us, because we put the world first, are like pegs fastened in secure places but still are cut down and perish. We believe we have everything in place to ensure our happiness at the expense of others yet even as we close ourselves off to hoard our dreams, we set ourselves up for denunciation. When we enter into or avoid conflict based on our own comfort levels, we set ourselves up for denunciation. When we begin and end each day without Christ, we set ourselves up for denunciation. When we make each day’s journey without dedicating all we do to Christ, we set ourselves up for denunciation.
So rather than seek our own ease, rather than look at other people’s splinters, we must look to our perspectives, motivations and actions. These beams we remove from our own eyes will tell us if we are setting ourselves up for denunciation. And after reading Isaiah, this is an understanding we will want to gain. It is action we will want to take. It is love we will want to share.
Image from: https://www.thecatholicthing.org/2017/08/03/splinters-beams-and-clear-sight%E2%80%A8%E2%80%A8/
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