Sin – in us
The reading from Baruch is not from the hand of Baruch, who was the secretary of Jeremiah. It dates from the time of the Maccabees and is like a penitential celebration deploring the sins that had led to the present calamities and oppression.
Modern means of communications have brought the world more closely together and shown us more clearly too, the presence of sin and evil in the world; more than half of the world is hungry and exploited, the world economy has gone out of hand notwithstanding dole-outs for development aid and whole nations are not free from inside or from outside. And in our own little worlds, there is repeated selfishness, pride at the expense of others, suspicion... While condemning the sins of society, let us not lose our personal sense of sin in the process; let us not forget our solidarity to sin, and at the same time, live better our solidarity to love and life on account of Christ. Sin is a rejection of Christ and his message.
Reading: Baruch 1:15-22
“When we look at our Lord God, we see justice; when we look in the mirror, we see confusion; when we look through the window, we see shame on the faces of the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. Our king, leaders, priests, prophets, ancestors are all ashamed to death. We’ve sinned before the Lord, and we’ve lost our credibility with him. “We haven’t heard the voice of our Lord God recently; we haven’t obeyed the commandments, even though they were presented to us face-to-face. From the day the Lord led our ancestors from the land of Egypt down to this very day we’ve gone out of our way to do the wrong thing; that’s why we tiptoe about, lest our Lord God hear where we are.
“Evil and rumors of evil have damaged the splendid reputation the Lord conferred upon his servant Moses. That was the day on which he led our forebears out of the land of Egypt to the land of milk and honey. Since that day we haven’t obeyed God, even though he sent prophet after prophet to warn us. Instead we flirted with idols; we’ve done nothing but evil right under God’s nose.
Gospel: Luke 10:13-16
“Doom, Chorazin! Doom, Bethsaida! If Tyre and Sidon had been given half the chances given you, they’d have been on their knees long ago, repenting and crying for mercy. Tyre and Sidon will have it easy on Judgment Day compared to you.
“And you, Capernaum! Do you think you’re about to be promoted to heaven? Think again. You’re on a mudslide to hell.
“The one who listens to you, listens to me. The one who rejects you, rejects me. And rejecting me is the same as rejecting God, who sent me.”
Prayer
Lord our God, merciful Father,
it is easy for us to condemn wars, civil strife,
corruption, exploitation, slavery of any kind.
But we ask you, Lord God, though very timidly,
to open our eyes to the evil in us.
Make us see Lord, that we are doing
on a small scale, in our own little worlds,
the evil for which we blame the big world.
Make us see that we too, are sinners in need of forgiveness
brought us by Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
