Friends,
“O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden, not your heart.”
This Sunday, we can take the psalm as the interpretive key to our readings. The response: O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden, not your heart, was the response of the Israelites when they grumbled at Meribah and Massah in the desert.
In the first reading, Moses promises the tribes of Israel that the Lord will send them a prophet like himself, coming from within their midst, who will speak God’s words. We meet this prophet in the Gospel. It is Jesus himself who amazes his audience in the synagogue by curing a man possessed by an unclean spirit. They are particularly impressed by Christ’s quiet authority.
In the second reading, Paul reassures his audience in Corinth, who are worrying about marriage in the wider context of the imminent end of time. He encourages them to give their undivided attention to the Lord and ensure everything is as it should be.
This week, consider spending some quiet time with the Lord, resting in him without words and listening to his voice in the silence of your heart. Let the Lord feel your great yearning for him and his gift of peace.
Joy and peace.
