Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, and they repented. They listened to a strange man. But what was the base for their repentance? They were not given the Ten commandments, and they were not part of the Covenant. So if they had to change their hearts what did they change from? It had nothing to do with a conversion in any 'religious' sense. It was turning away from evil ways, ways of cruelty, injustice and injustice. They cried out to 'god' asking for their life.
There was a sign greater than Jonah, but they did not repent. Jesus was the sign, not any single miracle, healing, or even death or resurrection taken separately. The sign of Jesus asks us to repent, first to recognize that we are the children of God. There is growth, responsibilities, maturity along with weaknesses and failures. So, to repent is to be open to the Father as his children and trust in his grace. We may have sinned, but our identity is not a 'sinner.' We may have named so, but Jesus has not done it for anyone.
One obstacle to our repentance may be our feeling of ourselves as a holy, selected people, and condemning others to be sinners. There is no need of repentance for 'me.' Thus we lose the freedom of the children and close ourselves within hard shells of our certainties we create for God. If we repent, our repentance welcomes all because all are children of God. Can we make an attempt to pray for a few people whom we really don't like? Christian charity and repentance demand that. Can we be open to the good news spoken by the 'other'?
No comments:
Post a Comment