What is a prophet? Ephesians:1.13 – When you hear the word of truth, and believe in Him, you will be marked with the seal of the Holy Spirit.
An elderly woman had just returned to
her home from an evening of religious service when she was startled by an
intruder. As she caught the man in the act of robbing her home of its
valuables, she yelled, "Stop - Acts 2:38!" (In the name of Jesus, turn
away from your sin...) The burglar stopped dead in his tracks. The woman calmly
called the police and explained what she had done. As the officer cuffed the man to take him in,
he asked the burglar, "Why did you just stand there? All the old lady did
was yell a Bible passage to you and you listened."
"Bible passage?" replied the
burglar, "I thought she said she had an AXE and two 38's!"
This
burglar heard the words of the old lady and believed in her and now he is marked
by the police. That at least prevented
any more disaster in his life.
In
the first reading of today, when Amos prophesied in Bethel, Amaziah the high
priest drove him away: Go back to Judah where you came from and prophesy there.
But never again here at Bethel for this is the king’s sanctuary.” (Am 7.12)
They did not listen to him there because he was not a professional prophet.
In
those days, if you want to be a professional prophet you need to have
credentials. This means you either have to be coming from a long line of
prophets as your ancestors or you go to Prophet University and join the
fraternity of prophets (association or guild). And then the professional
prophet is now deployed. They go and foretell the future of the king, the
soldier, the merchant, the farmer and after they get their commission. The more
prophecies favorable and fulfilled, the better their track record, more popular
they become (they get to be more in demand and sought after), the higher their
talent fee. They just have to make sure that their prophecies please their
clients for them to collect their fee. It’s just a job not a calling for them.
Instead
Amos did not come from a line of prophets nor was he schooled in the art of
prophecy. He had no credentials. He was a herdsman tending to his flock and his
sycamore trees. This was until God called him to prophesy to Israel – the
northern kingdom. The irony is he is coming from Judah – the southern kingdom
governed by a different king. So why would he want to be a prophet? And yet
Amos heard God’s word and believed in Him. That is why he is marked by the Spirit of God. That’s why
for him to be a prophet is a calling not a job.
You
see, Amos had to tell the northerners that Israel had become corrupt and
unjust; the most elementary aspects of justice and equality were routinely
trampled on. Unless the kingdom of the north mended its ways and returned to
the ways of God, disaster would overtake them in the form of natural events and
military defeats. But the Kingdom of Israel did not heed Amos’ words, and in
722 B.C. the Assyrians totally destroyed the Northern Kingdom, erasing it from
history. With this I think you can prophecy what happened to Amos as well as
the others.
Nowadays,
our “prophets” are sometimes well-informed scientists and experts, and we
cannot say that they are not sent by God to bring us to our senses (even if
they are unaware of their mission). Pope Francis has joined his prophetic voice
to the truth that comes to us through the work of scientists in his encyclical Laudato Si’. He warns humanity to mend
its ways, for continued disregard for the environment and contempt for the
created order can only end in tragedy for all. If the work of scientists or the
words of the Pope are ridiculed or rejected out of hand through ignorance, fear
or self-interest, then we will have no one to blame but ourselves. We can only
hope that minds and hearts are open to his prophetic warning.
God’s
warning also comes in the form of the apostle’s proclamation as prophets of the
gospel of Jesus. They were to travel light – nothing for their journey except
for their staff, their sandals, and the clothes on their backs just like the
true prophets of old. Why? Because they have heard the word, believed in
Jesus, and are now marked by the
seal of the Spirit.
And
this alone should be enough. We are all called to be prophets and to convey
God’s truth in this world. But just like the professional prophets, the
temptations for us are great to see this just as a profession and not as a calling.
Temptations abound for us to prophecy on the side of the rich and powerful and
to ignore the poor and abandoned because it is more convenient.
Three boys are in the school yard
bragging about their uncles’ professions- “So, who’s your uncle?” The first boy
says, 'My uncle scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a poem,
they give him $50.' The second boy says, 'That's nothing. My uncle scribbles a
few words on piece of paper, he calls it a song, they give him $100.' The third
boy says, 'That’s peanuts. My uncle scribbles a few words on a piece of paper,
he calls it a sermon, and it takes eight people to collect all the money!'
Today
let us remember, just like Amos, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, the apostles - to
be God’s prophet is our calling. After the priest has baptised us with water,
he then anoints us with holy oil as he says: “God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has freed you from sin. He now
anoints you with the chrism of salvation. As Christ was anointed Priest,
Prophet, and King, so may you live always as members of his body, sharing
everlasting life.” We were called to be prophets through our baptism when
we heard the word, believed in God and were marked by the Holy Spirit. Let us be
faithful to that calling.
References:
Glenn, A. (2005). Prophecies for dummies. The Skeptic Report.
Lewis, S. (2015). Often man refuses to hear the truth. The Catholic Register.
MIndel. N.(2015) The Prophet Amos. Chabad.org.
Kehot Publication Society.
Gill, M. & J. Spoolstra. (2015). Jesus: Priest, Prophet, King. Link to Liturgy.