3/1/2016 – Daniel 3:25, 34-43 – Tuesday of the 3rd week of Lent

       King Nebuchadnezzar built a gigantic golden idol.  He set this idol on a plain in Babylon for all to worship.  Three Jews who were administrators of a province in Babylon refused to worship this statue. King Nebuchadnezzar has these 3 men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, thrown into a fiery furnace in punishment for not worshipping the statue.  Our first reading today from the book of Daniel consists of the prayer that one of these men prays as he is thrust into the furnace, protected by the angels of the Lord:  “For we are reduced, O Lord, beyond any other nation brought low everywhere in the world this day because of our sins.” 

      As we hear this reading from the Old Testament today, we might think about all the war and the sufferings, all the violence and terrorism,  going on in the world today.  We might think about the high murder rates in cities across our country like Chicago and Detroit, about suicide bombers and extremist groups that intentionally take innocent lives, about the refugees from the Middle East who are overwhelming Germany, Greece, and other countries in Europe in search for a life away from the violence and terrorism of their home countries.  There are people in communities like Holly Springs just about an hour from us recovering from the tornado that hit there several months ago, as well as those in California and other states in the West trying to get through a terrible drought. 

        We stand in solidarity with all who are suffering in our world today. We hear their prayers and their cries of anguish as go out to the Lord, as our prayers are united with theirs.  We can pray in the words of those in the furnace in Babylon so many centuries ago: “Let our sacrifice be in your presence today
as we follow you unreservedly; for those who trust in you cannot be put to shame.”  As we continue on our Lenten journey, no matter what trials and tribulations and sufferings we face, let us place our trust in God.  Let us be the hands and feet, the eyes and ears of the Lord, helping those in need, reaching out to our brothers and sisters, with our prayers and with our works of mercy.