Are We Listening to What's Around Us?

In yesterday’s Gospel, Jesus admonished Jerusalem for being unwilling to listen to the prophets and others sent to them by God, preferring to kill and stone them instead. These were sent to gather the children of Israel together, but they were unwilling to be gathered. We see this in today’s culture as well, where certain events occur and people say things that are meant to bring others back into the fold of Christ, and they are ignored and maligned, and people are ostracized if not killed for these views. This can happen inside or outside of the Church.

Events like school shootings, bombings, and other tragic occurrences can be a call from God to turn back to Him and follow His teachings by forcing us to turn to Him in the tragedy, but oftentimes in our country we continue to blame gun laws and other external things instead of realizing that we need a fundamental change in our society, one that orients us toward God and His commandments instead of our own selfish desires. This also happens with people, when those who try to point others toward God and His truth are shunned instead of listened to and considered as someone trying to help society rather than hurt it. An extreme example is the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk, who though he was not Catholic, stood for many things that the Church teaches, such as traditional marriage and abstinence before marriage, and he was killed for these and other traditional views. Within the Church, there have been many clerics, such as Bishop Strickland, who were ostracized after speaking up for the Church’s traditional teachings. When we refuse to listen to what is going on and spoken around us, then God will eventually leave us to our own designs and we will only bring chaos upon ourselves.

Are there things that God is trying to tell you personally through things that have happened in society or your own life? In addition to this reflection, pray for our society, that it too will reflect on the things and people sent to us and turn back to God as a result. We must not be like the old Jerusalem, but instead be open to God in our minds and hearts and listen to what He wishes to teach us.