2 August 2026 #RuleofLife
In the midst of ordinary time, on the heels of a long-to-recover summer cold and subsequent road-tripping vacations, I’ve had plenty of time to ponder some pretty big questions. Isaiah was doing the same thing in our first reading, you know: He was trying to make sense of the Babylonian exile… what it meant to for his people. For the normal folks, those practicing the monotheistic religion of Abraham, the Exile was a staggering blow to their faith. They assumed (incorrectly) that the Davidic covenant would cover a multitude of sins and that their personal responsibility was set at the feet of their King. It was his religious fervor that garnished the Lord’s favor. Alas. Not true. Into Exile they went, heads cast downward, shoulders drooped, morale crushed, to ponder their personal and corporate sins, wondering how to recover the ideals of their Father and the ways of the Lord. Isaiah tells them that if they individually “heedfully listen” to the Lord, they will have an abundant life, their soul-thirst sated and their lives content.
As St. Paul asks, “What separates you - or your loved ones - from the love of Christ?” What keeps you from a soul-satisfied life? Is it a personal anguish, a political persecution, a spiritual famine of the soul, a past-laid-bare, a dangerous occupation, laziness, or maybe the acceptance of our often violent, indifferent, immoral culture? It is indeed a war “out there” as Paul alludes to. It was no different for the early Christians of Rome than it is for us now, with the NOTABLE exception that our deaths aren’t physical, they are of the social-ostracization ilk, the kind that leaves scars on the heart instead of marks on the skin. So, what’s a girl to do as she navigates resistant family connections and a hostile political atmosphere when it comes to living out her faith?
Nothing.
Well, not nothing outward anyway. You see, the Israelites set their personal responsibility aside because they had the Davidic covenant… as long as a son of David sat on the throne, nothing bad would happen to them. They could do as pleased and all would be well. As an OT scholar, the constant refrain at the end of the book of Judges carries through all the kingships: “and all did what was right in their own eyes.” And doing whatever they wanted, my friends, brought them into Exile.
Where does that leave us? It finds us examining our own faith practices, yes? As Paul says (and I paraphrase), nothing else matters. I’ve been pondering my own faith journey lately, reading some giants of the spiritual world, spent time in reflection, and here’s what I know:
Joy-filled apprentices-to-Jesus have a spiritual rule-of-life. They (a) spend time with the Lord daily, (b) keep holy the Sabbath day, (c) commit to a group of friends who encourage spiritual growth, (d) confess with regularity, (e) attend a yearly retreat.
I can’t make you do these five things, just like the prophets couldn’t make the Israelite’s choose the Good, Paul couldn’t force the Pharisees to accept Jesus, nor could Jesus force anyone to apprentice to him. It’s our personal choice, our own responsibility.
These are things we ought to do as Catholics - and we offer all of these here at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, because we know that these things will transform our lives into something Beautiful for God. And that, my friends, is the abundant miracle. #RuleofLife