to: all of my friends
from: Father Bill Muench
I want to tell you that I went skiing this week – second time this year – and I must admit it was a beautiful day – sunny, not very cold – and rather exhilarating – however, here I am still trying to recover – my muscles still ache – well, actually, yell. However, I was pleased to discover I still have a little bit of life left.
The Burning Bush and the Fig Tree
The Old Testament reading for the Third Sunday is from Exodus – the story of Moses and the burning Bush – and in the Gospel reading from Luke, Jesus wants us to remember God’s love and forgiveness as he tells the parable of the fig tree.
God calls Moses – God wants to rescue the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt, so he calls Moses. It is often recorded in the Bible that God reaches out to an unsuspecting individual, asking him to embrace a mission or a role that this person never anticipated nor feels competent to complete. God often turns the timid into the bold prophet. Have you heard God’s call today? You never know.
This event tells us a great deal about God’s call. Moses goes over to inspect the burning bush and – God speaks to him – “Moses, Moses! Come no nearer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Wherever you are when God calls is holy ground. We don’t have to be at a holy place – like a Church or Shrine – for God to reach us. God can make anywhere holy ground.
God sends Moses – but Moses wants to know God’s name. Which is interesting to us, isn’t it? You would think if Moses was so important to God – Moses would know God’s name. God identifies himself with the Hebrew name that became so sacred to the Jews that they never speak it. But we learn a great deal about God – as we read the translation – “I am who am.” God is a person – not an idol or statue as among the pagans – and God is present tense – God is always now.
The Gospel parable is the second chance message. The parables of Jesus are stories – that teach us something about God and the spiritual life. A person plants a fig tree in his orchard – but after three years no fruit has grown – so he tells his gardener to cut it down. But the gardener, obviously a compassionate person, suggests, “Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.”
We never do know what happened – the important thing is the image of this wonderful gardener – who in Jesus’ story, obviously is an image of God. God – like this gardener – is compassionate and caring – and always ready to give a second chance. Jesus’ message – God never gives up on us – God is always ready to forgive and give a second chance.
The other part of the story that always intrigues me – as the gardener cultivates and fertilizes the fig tree – I wonder how does God cultivate us and fertilize us. I suspect there are innumerable answers – and God uses a different method with each person. Personally, I can remember some unique moments when God called me back – led me to conversion – let me know that I had a second chance.
LET US PRAY
Almighty God, my Father, you who are “I am” – may I always be aware of your presence in my life. May I never forget how much you love me – and how ready you are to give me a second chance in your forgiving love. This is my prayer. Amen.
Please join me as we say together the Lord’s Prayer.
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