Homily 15th Sunday OT 14th July 2024

The word ‘prophet/ makes us think of one or two types of figures in the scriptures. Either we picture someone like John the Baptist or Jeremiah or Jonah, the kind of fiery, intense reformers, who purpose seems to be to constantly call attention to society’s shortcomings. Or we picture an Ezekial or Isiah, a mystic, someone who can look at the world even into the future and read truths unavailable to the rest of us.

But the gift of prophecy is not limited to them. In the second reading St Paul says that every one of us has been given the ability to grasp and appreciate and express the plan which the father has for the development of human society. Simply enough, that is what the prophecy is all about.

Scripturally, the word ‘prophet’ means one who speaks the mind of God. All of those who recognise in the life of Christ a standard for their own lives, and accept that standard, become called to represent to the world that values, the attitudes, the understanding that shape a life in accord with the mind of God.

That means that there may be times in the lives of each of us that we take a stand that is critical of society, that will set us at odds with society. The stance of a reformer, he stance of a modern-day John the Baptist or Jonah or Jeremiah.

It may be too that at times our call to prophesy will ask us to take the stance of an Isiah or Ezekial, the mystics who set aside the familiarities and dependable tools of reason and logic so as to free themselves to base their lives on the deeper truths that make up the mind of God. It is a prophet’s act to recognise and to proclaim that all of life is ultimately mysterious and that the most we can ever really grasp is the surface of it, what appears to be.

We are all of us, time and again, called to live comfortably, gratefully, joyfully, in a world that is very often unreasonable, uncontrollable, and mysterious.

The point is that for each of us the exercise of our call to prophesy will be as varied as is the need of God’s people to know the truth, and there is no situation in which that need is not a real one. At work, in university, in school, in community, at recreation, there is a way of acting, understanding, relating to others that is in accord with the Christian call, with God’s plan for human activity and there are ways which are not.

All of us, in each of these situations, are called and sent to act out with all our ability, the way that is.

May the lord guide our steps.

Fr Andrew