REJECTION AND DISCOMFORT OF A PROPHET: WHO WILL SPEAK FOR US?

Sometimes we find in our communities, organizations, institutes and societies things going wrong and everyone keeps to himself or herself, especially when the wrong comes from those in higher authority. We prefer to suffer in silence because we are afraid of the consequences of speaking up, which could result to rejection or being stigmatized as rebellious. Probably we want everyone to like us and have good things said about us. Today’s liturgy draws our attention to the discomfort of the prophetic mission. The voice of the prophet should never go silent in the midst of evil. If not, evil will triumph over good and darkness over light.

The first reading gives a clear picture of the prophetic mission of Ezekiel. The Spirit of God entered into him and said, “Son of man, I sent you to the sons of Israel, to a nation of rebels, who have rebelled against me… they have transgressed against me, impudent and stubborn” (Ez. 2:3-4). We can imagine the difficult audience God sent his prophet Ezekiel to speak to, they were rebellious by nature even to God who had loved them and done so much for them. Despite their attitude, Ezekiel was sent by God to speak the Word of God to them, not his own word. A prophet remains God’s messenger, so it should be with every priest, pastors, preacher or teacher of the Scripture. This Word should be preached without fear. The prophet should not in anyway dilute the word of God or sugar-coat it in order to please the people and displease God, probably because of what he/she stands to lose by speaking up (not to be rejected by the people).

Someone once told me after one of my homilies on ‘prosperity theology’ and some cunny ways of making money in religious gathering, he said, “Father give this people what they want to hear, if not they will keep their money to themselves and you will remain a poor priest.” I spontaneously responded, “Not in compromise of the word of God.” This brings to mind some of the challenges we face in bearing witness to the truth. Standing for the truth may not give you the pleasures or comforts of life and those who appear so gullible may be the ones opting and encouraging others to reject you. Importantly, as the Lord said to Ezekiel, “Whether they hear or refuse to hear they will know that there has been a prophet among them” (Ez. 2:5).

Of recent, there have been some gullible Catholics who tend to mix Catholicism with ‘Zionicism’, otherwise known as Zionites to make up for their own spirituality. As a result of this, some Catholic Priests and lay faithfuls have outrightly spoken through social media to correct the notion that such persons cannot be Catholic and at the same time Zionites. This clarity was necessary for so many ‘miracle seeking Catholics’ that have been gullible. For us as Catholics, we consider the founder of Zion ministry as schismatic (a split from the Church). One cannot be a schismatic and still claim to be a Catholic. In our creed we profess “I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” Anyone who stands to divide the Church’s unity and takes no order from the appropriate authority or local ordinary is a schisma and the church frowns at it.

Defending the doctrines of the Church have attracted lots of persecutions in various forms. Some want us to keep quiet and see things go wrong completely. To my brother priests and lay faithful who keep bearing witness to the truth, listen to the word of God in today’s reading, “Whether they hear or refuse to hear they will know that there has been a prophet among them” (Ez. 2:5). We don’t force anyone to adhere to the teachings of the Church and we are not in competition with anyone. If you want to be a Catholic, be a good Catholic, and if you want to be somewhere else, focus on your belief but I advise you stand for the truth.

Christ in the Gospel experienced something similar to Ezekiel. He went to his own country and began to teach in the synagogue. Many who heard him were astonished at his knowledge. Realizing he was the son of Mary and a mere carpenter; they took offence at him because they knew how he began and left Nazareth as a carpenter’s son and now returned as a rabbi with a group of disciples. As the sons of Israel did in the time of Ezekiel, the people rebelled against Christ and rejected him in his hometown. In response to them, Christ said, “A prophet is not without honour, except in his own country, and among his own kin, and his own house” (Mk 6:4). He accepted rejection as the price a faithful prophet must pay. He could not do mighty works because of their unbelief. We recall what he said to Jairus last Sunday, “Do not fear, only believe” (Mk 5:36). Those who laughed at him and did not believe, he put them outside and went in with those who believed in him. God may work with no belief, but not with unbelief. Not to believe in Christ is the worst thing that can happen to anyone.

St. Paul in the second reading expresses his own form of rejection and discomfort for being a messenger of Christ. He said, “…A thorn was given to me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from being too elated” (2 Cor. 12:7). When we think of thorns in the flesh, we think of something which frustrates and causes trouble in the lives of those afflicted. The thorns in the flesh brought discomfort for Paul which he took to God praying, “I begged the lord about this, that he should leave; but he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (vv.8-9) Instead of God removing the thorns from Paul’s life, God gave his grace to Paul to strengthen him in his weakness, to bear insults, hardship, persecutions and calamities. Paul recognized his insufficiency and prayed to God. The same is expected of us, God’s grace cannot be sufficient for us until we realize we are insufficient.

As ministers and baptized Christians, we are prophets of God and should be ready at all times for the rejections and discomforts our vocation will bring us if truly we want to stand for Christ. I assure you that the grace of God is sufficient for us all as we turn to God in our insufficiency. The success of our ministry is not by our intellectual ability, cleverness nor sufficiency for work. No! It is our disposition to allow the grace of God to lead and fill us. Therefore, in the midst of rejection and discomfort, let us remember the third stanza of the song of a young prophet, which goes thus, “And everywhere you are to go, my hand will follow you, you will not be alone; in all the dangers that you fear, you will find me very near, your words my own.” With this in mind, we can speak with authority given to us by God, regardless of fear. May God bless his word in our hearts through Christ our Lord. Amen!

Happy Sunday!

Fr. Ken Dogbo, OSJ