30 June 2020 - The First Martyrs of the Church of Rome - Tuesday of the 13th week of Ordinary Time - Amos 3:1-8, 4:11-12

     If you recall, for the last several weeks, we had been hearing from the 1st and 2nd books of Kings in our first readings in the daily masses. Those books told us of the prophets Elijah and Elisha bringing God’s message to the people of Israel when they had strayed from God, of Israel being taken to exile in Babylon.   Today, we hear from the prophet Amos. Amos was a shepherd from the southern kingdom of Judah.  God called him to be a prophet, sending him to the northern kingdom of Israel.  Amos confronted the people for the way they were devoted to worshipping God in their liturgies and prayers and piety, but ignored the injustices around them. Indeed, Amos is now a voice of social justice in the Hebrew Scriptures whose voice still calls out to us today. Amos today tells the people that although they were favored by the Lord in all of the human family, they did not respond in love and service. 

     Today, we commemorate martyrs from the early Church in Rome in our Church’s liturgical calendar, a feast day that was established with the Second Vatican council.  In the year 64 CE, under the reign of Nero, the Roman empire was experiencing a lot of problems and a lot of social unrest.  A huge fire started, spreading throughout the city and consuming many neighborhoods.  Nero blamed the Christians for the fire, killing them in many different barbaric ways. In our society today, we tend to want to scapegoat people too, don’t we.  It is easier to blame someone and to tear people down, to hurl accusations at them and to blame a certain group for all of our problems, than it is to attempt the difficult work of healing, reconciliation, and building bridges.  It is easier to destroy than it is to build up and reach out to others in the midst of our challenges and problems.  

     As Amos confronted the reality of his day, of the way the people were not practicing the mercy and justice of God in their daily lives, we also are to read the signs of the times in our modern world. Are we practicing justice and mercy in our lives?  Are we turning away from the word of God and turning away from his laws and commandments?  How are we called to turn back to the Lord?