For the length of this week, the first readings of our Masses are taken from the Book of Hosea; the Prophet of Israel who lived in the 8th century, B.C. Hosea lived under terrible social conditions. The relationship between God and his chosen people had gone sour to say the least - it was adulterous and idolatrous. No longer did the people worship the true God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt but rather turned against him in favor of many false gods. An abomination for which God has little stomach.
The “marriage” between the Lord and his people had grown painfully repugnant. Hosea becomes a sign to the people Israel both as a prophet of doom and a sign of restoration. The prophet finds himself in a painful “marriage” to a wife who becomes a prostitute which God uses as a living benchmark for the people to view. Hosea is conflicted and God is the same.
The emotions expressed in the readings, which center on love offered, rejected, persistent, desired, enraged, maternal, tender, compassionate, overwhelmed, healed, forgiven, and restored are gut-wrenching. The Lord loves, reaches out, “allures her” and “speaks to her heart” but Israel is blind and sells herself out for much lesser promise than what God offers to them. The call for repentance is unyielding.
Hosea becomes the Lord's mouthpiece of outrage, love and mercy. The Lord's desperate attempt to get Israel's attention is the cry of a determined lover who lives only for the object of his affection. It is God's divine love alone that would be so single-minded and jealous; unwilling to share.
Hosea is tagged as a minor prophet and his book contains a brief 14 chapters. Yet, the level of emotion and the cry of the Lord is powerful. God must cut Israel like a surgeon must root out a cancer which threatens the life of the patient. The anesthesia will be minimal. But this divine doctor loves the patient and will never abandon his hope for healing and restoration. Any harm done will be only to the disease that the patient may come to her senses.
Imagine God speaking to you in this manner. We must place ourselves in the person of ancient Israel. Where is my blindness; my pride; my foolish rejection? God pursues us and waits patiently for our return. Like the Father in the classic story of God's mercy known as the Prodigal Son, Luke 15: 11 – 32, God waits patiently for our return. When we come to our senses, he runs “out to meet” us and throws “his arms” around our neck and “kisses” the object of his love.
Read the book of Hosea in its entirety this week. It is divine soap opera; a blend of love, abandonment and forgiveness. If you can, pray through the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15 as well. Believe it or not, God loves us that much. It might overwhelm and move us to greater honesty about our lives and the value we place on our brothers and sisters. More to come . . .
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