9/26/2017 – Homily for Tuesday of 25th week in Ordinary Time – Ezra 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20

     From the scribe Ezra in our first reading today, we hear about the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem after the return of the people of Israel from their exile.  According to Jewish Tradition, Erza helped reintroduce the Torah – the Word of God - to Jerusalem after their exile.  From the description of the rebuilding of the Temple and the return to Jerusalem that we hear today from the book of Ezra, all sounds orderly and successful, doesn’t it? However, from other descriptions of the rebuilding of the Temple and the return from exile in the Old Testament, we know that there was a lot of confusion, arguments, and frustration as well.  Some thought the new Temple was not good enough compared to the Temple that Solomon built.  There were a lot of accusations going back and forth between those who were sent into exile and those who remained behind. We see tensions in our modern Church today on many different levels, and looking at those tensions from the lens of what went on in Ancient Israel, perhaps we can better understand it. But rather than accuse or attack someone who thinks differently than we do in our Church, perhaps we can learn from them and try to get along with them, perhaps we can celebrate and appreciate the diversity that exists within our community of faith.  Hopefully, we can all work toward a spirit of unity, solidarity, and positivity within our Church.  Let us hope so.