Rend your Hearts

For morning prayer we read from the Prophet Joel.  Joel, like many of the other major prophets, realizes that the religious and social chaos that is being experienced is from Sin.  The people of God have become unfaithful to the law (divine precepts) and the covenant.  Becoming self absorbed and self centered they have neglected the care and concern for the poor and anawim.  From our perspective we might suggest that is the governments job.  But since the day when two or three people gathered together this has not been a good option.

So as the people neglect the basic precepts of their faith, those elements that once served to bond people together, are coming apart at the seams.  The prophets are not simply conveying the necessity of a religion which will take care of the 'social services,' but calling for a conversion that recognizes our connection to God, and to our communion.  This is the problem that Joel sees.  Men and women are continuing to go through the sacred rituals in a very pious manner, but they themselves remain un-converted.  More so, their day to day living remains anything but pious and holy.  Religion has a nostalgic value; and that is all.

In our Diocese we had participated in a diocese wide evaluation process, several years ago.  Of course we were told that the end product would be a living document which would not end up on a bookshelf.  That lasted about three years.  This had been an awesome project, with much good intentions, but for many their hearts were not in this endeavor.  People dutifully went through the motions, but never really owned the end product of the encounter.

There was a Book I had read a few years ago, From Maintenance to Mission, by Robert Rivers, CSP.  Using the Bishop's document, Go Make Disciples, he outlines the problem in our Church today, in that we are consistently doing stuff, but not really proclaiming the Good News.  But even to get to that point Rivers would suggest removing the crud, habits, and mindset, which allows us to continue to go through rote activities.  To be about the mission we as individuals, to be sure, and as a Church need a conversion.

The prophetic role of the Church seems to have fallen away.  We make soft and nice statements every once and awhile.  Joel would suggest the importance of naming and claiming our Sins, so as to engage in Conversion and Discipleship.  It is not enough to have a cross in our sanctuary, it has to be part of our life too.  Rend your hearts not your garments.