Lecto Divina From Ezekiel

I was reading Ezekiel in the Old Testament in front of the Blessed Sacrament this afternoon and trying to practice  lectio divina, an ancient Benedictine way of slowly and contemplatively letting God speak to you  through the Scriptures.

I opened the Bible to Ezekiel chapter 39 where Ezekiel prophesys against the city of Gog.  God says that He will "urge you (Gog) on" (vs. 2) and that Gog will fight Israel and be laid waste out in the open where they will be eaten by animals because God can no longer tolerate His name to be profaned.

That passage of Scripture seemed to be saying that sometimes God allows us to amass our resources and fight hard for what we think we need to keep--and He allows us to lose that fight.  God allows us to be vulnerable and to "fall in an open field" (v. 5) .  Indeed, God sometimes "urges us on", knowing that we need to lose everything before we turn to Him.

God says, "I will send fire upon Magog and upon those who live securely in the coastlands; thus they shall know that I am the LORD." (v.6)   He allows us to lose everything because He knows that is what it will take for us to turn to God and to "burn off" the excess and unnecessary things, practices and attitudes we are holding onto in our lives that are keeping us from unity with Him.

The destruction will be so great that "men shall be permanently employed to pass through the land burying those who lie unburied, so as to purify the land. For seven months they shall keep searching. When they pass through, should they see a human bone, let them put up a marker beside it, until others have buried it in the Valley of Hamon-gog." (vs. 14-15)

As it did in the "Dark Ages" society today needs men and women whose lives are completely dedicated to Our Lord to "pass through" the destruction and "purify the land". Those in monasteries and convents who keep the Faith and stay in prayer are placed here by God to show us the way through the dark days of our own making. Ezekiel says, "For seven months they shall keep searching." (vs. 14) This purification will take a long time and only be accomplished by losing our battle with the world and through much searching.

The text also says, "When they pass through, should they see a human bone, let them put up a marker beside it, until others have buried it in the Valley of Hamon-gog." (vs. 15) Our purification as human beings is such a monumental task that those men and women "permanently employed" to purify us, will only be able to leave a marker--to plant a seed, if you will, and let others finish the job of the burial of the selfishness and vanity we have been uselessly fighting for, for so long.

In short, God is always with us whether we are fighting or resting, crying or praying. He has a plan that often we cannot see. But He has sent people into our world whose full-time job it is to help their fellow human beings on this journey.

Be confident that our Creator is with us every step of the way.