ST. THÉRÈSE OF THE CHILD JESUS, VIRGIN AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH (MEMORIAL)

We did not heed the voice of the Lord. 

Today’s passage is part of a letter that the prophet Baruch, one of the exiles in Babylon, wrote to the remnant of Israelites still living in Jerusalem. In it, Baruch asks the Jerusalem community to pray for the exiles and to use the funds he has collected for what they would need to make sacrifices to God under the Mosaic law. But this was more than a simple message. It was also a public acknowledgment of guilt and a plea for God’s mercy (Baruch 3:1-8).

Baruch’s prayer is filled with pain and regret. Apparently, nothing could have brought the Israelites face-to-face with their disobedience and rebellion but the horror of the destruction of Jerusalem and their sacred Temple. It was a wake-up call like no other.

Sometimes it takes something truly difficult to wake us up to our sin—or to any situation in which we have been “too ready to disregard [God’s] voice” (Baruch 1:19). That shouldn’t surprise us, however. It’s part of our fallen human nature to stubbornly go our own way or to rationalize our sin or simply ignore it.

That’s not what God wants for us. He longs for us to become aware of our sin so that we can repent and receive his abundant mercy. So at times he will use an unexpected difficulty to open our eyes and lead us to repentance.

No one enjoys a wake-up call; no one likes to confront their sin. As with the exiles, it can be painful and fill us with regret. But just as it happened with the exiles, it can also be the beginning of our own restoration and renewal.

God eventually brought the exiles home. We can come home to our Father right now—and every time we go to Confession. In that sacrament, he will not only forgive us; he will give us the grace to “heed” his voice once again (Baruch 1:21).

“Lord, wake me up to my sins so that I can be renewed and restored.”

Psalm 79:1-5, 8-9
Luke 10:13-16
Baruch 1:15-22

WORD AMONG US