seek ye first

Ezekiel 9:1-7; 10:18-22; Psalm 113 the glory of the lord is higher than the skies; Matthew 18:15-20

Ezekiel, the prophet, hears the cry of God from heaven give orders to the heavenly helpers to go throughout the city and mark a "thau" on the forehead of those who moan and groan over the abominations that are practiced in the city and to all the others, to strike them down.

Quite a cry from heaven we are privy to through the prophet Ezekiel.

So what is with this marking, this "tav or thau" upon the forehead. The tav is the 22nd and last letter of the hebrew alphabet. It is believed to have origanted simply as a signature of a name. It represents truth and belonging to God's kingdom. The sign upon the forehead is represenative of those who have the correct attitude of life in trusting in God's divine will. Thus the mark is an indication of righteousness and moral uprightness and God's approval. Those who are lamenting the delcine of society have placed their trust in God alone. The mark on the forehead represents the grandeur of heart by which they seek to make amends for the despicable morality of all the rest.

It reminds us that we too should also in some way practice repentance for the sins of our society. Each day we should offer a little something in restituion. Perhaps a Rosary, a simple prayer, a moment of silence, a time of fasting in order to deepen our awareness of our dependence on God but also our role in sanctifying our society.

The people marked with the tav were those who were not only weeping over the sins of their society but were seeking continually to restore the uprightness of their societ as well. They were not just passive but active. They were seeking first the kingdom of God, and this seeking involved an active lament of failure and sin.

It is true to say that We can know what one seeks by what he chooses to cry over!
We are all familiar with "crying over spilt milk." These are those who cry for the wrong reason. But the people marked with the tav cry for all the right reasons.

A question for us:
What shows forth in our life that we belong to God and we seek his kingdom? What do we cry over? How do we seek first the kingdom?



Words from Pope Benedict

"The fool in the Bible, the one who does not want to learn from experience of visible things, that nothing lasts forever but that all things pass away, youth and physical strength, amenities and important roles. Making one's life depend on such an ephemeral reality is therefore foolishness. The person who trust in the Lord, on the other hands, does not fear the adversities of life, nor the inevitable reality of death: he is the person who has acquired a wsie heart, like the saints."

words from Saint Clare of assisi
"Happy indeed is she who is granted a place at the divine banquet, for she may cling with inmost heart to him whose beauty eternally awes the blessed host of heaven; to him whose love inspires love, whose contemplation refreshes, whose generosity satisfies, whose gentleness delights, whose memory shines sweetly as the dawn; to him whose fragrance revives the dead, and whos eglorious vision will bless all the citizens of that heavenly Jerusalem...look into that mirror daily and study well your reflection, that you may adorn yourself, mind and body, with an enveloping garment of every virtue, and thus find yourself attired in flowers and gowns befitting the daughter and most chaste bride of the king on high..."

Study well your reflection! Is there a markign on your forehead that shows you belong to God and you want his kingdom to come and his will to be done.