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Isaiah 6:1-8

5th Sunday of Year C – 2022

4 février 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Apostle Peter, compassion, fear of God, image of God, Isaiah 6:1-8, Luke 15:11-32, Luke 5:1-11, prophet Isaiah, return, sins


The mention of the word GOD can bring different images to our minds, images and feelings.
Sad to say, often the first feeling that arises within us is… fear.
It has been so through the history of humanity – people have been afraid of the God they worshipped.

The 1st reading of this Sunday (Isaiah 6:1-8) shows the prophet Isaiah reacting in fear to the vision he is given:

 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips…
and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”

In the gospel (Luke 5:1-11), we see Peter, the apostle, who “fell at Jesus’ knees and said:
“Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”

How long, indeed how long, does it take us to move from this picture of a fear-inspiring God,
to the picture of God that Jesus himself gave us – that of a God of tenderness and compassion.

In the parable of the Prodigal son – which is in fact that of the Prodigal God – (Luke 15:11-32) 
Jesus shows us, he literally shows us, what kind of a God his Father, and OUR Father, is:

  • a God who is NOT put off by our sins, no matter how shameful, but always ready to forgive us,
  • a God who is anxiously waiting for our return,
  • a God who bends to lift us up,
  • a God with no thought of punishment (as we so easily picture him) but only of showering on us his blessings of all kinds.

This is how God revealed himself in Jesus – nobody else would have dared to… ‘invent’ such a god…
Jesus became his incarnation, his very presence among us.

If this is not our image of God, then…
we need to abandon all other images of him and accept this ‘vision’ of him that is the true one.
 

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/5e-dimanche-de-lannee-c-2022/

 

Source: Images: istockphoto.com    bible.com    Worship House Media

5th Sunday of the Year, C

4 février 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 1 Cor.3:9), angels, Gerard W. Hughes, God's message, Isaiah, Isaiah 6:1-8, Luke 5:1-11, messenger, sin, The God of Surprises, weakness

healthy_eating_s3_daughter_helps_mom_cook, www.medicinenet.comfather-and-son-fishing-guideYou would smile hearing a father tell his young son: “Danny, I want to catch a big fish; will you help me?” Smile, you would also seeing a young girl with a grin as her mother said: “Today I need your help to cook lunch!” We all know that neither the father nor the mother really need the help of the children and yet they are happy to involve them in the activity they have planned.

These examples came to my mind as I read the 1st reading of this 5th Sunday (Year C). It is the scene of Isaiah, the prophet (Is.6:1-8) who is called to be God’s messenger. Well, at first he is not called but… he offers his services to God who is searching for a messenger. This is quite surprising and not in line with our idea of a god. We picture God as being Almighty, all powerful, and surely not in need of anyone. Moreover, in the vision that Isaiah is given to witness there are many angels who, by definition, are precisely God’s messengers. And yet, God is looking for someone to send with his message.

This is the true image of OUR God: a God who wants to be in need… of us, human beings – and this, from the very beginning when he asked the newly-created Adam to name the animals that he, God, has brought into being. Much later, the apostle Paul will say boldly: “We are fellow workers with God” (1 Cor.3:9).Isaiah vision

A theologian and spiritual writer (Gerard W. Hughes) has written a book entitled: The God of Surprises. Indeed, God is constantly surprising us. And the amazing thing is that God does not ask us to be without defect, or weakness, or sin, to associate us with his work. When we speak the words: “Lord, I am not worthy…” as Peter spoke in today’s gospel (Luke 5:1-11), we mean well as he did! But the truth is that God does NOT ask us to be worthy.

What God wants is our eagerness to work with him. Work with him at making the world a better place for all. Work with him at creating more happiness for people around us. Work with him in spreading the message of his close presence with us. This is the partnership he offers us – and what a partnership it is!

Source: Images: Boy: footage.framepool.com    Girl: www.shutterstock.com
Isaiah: amaickinghezekiah,blogspot.com