Welcome

Our first reading, Genesis 15:1-18, recounts God making a covenant with Abram.  Covenants were usually two-way affairs, binding both parties. This acknowledged by them each passing between divided carcasses, symbol of the dangers of division.  In this instance, only God is bound. Promising that God will remain faithful even when humanity fails. It is trust in this promise that gives Jesus the courage, in Luke 13:31-35, to continue on his way to Jerusalem despite the dangers that await him.  He is given the opportunity to flee, to act in his own self-interest, but refuses.  He understands that standing up to power has consequences but so does appeasing power, it will lead to his people being scattered like the chicks who refuse to be gathered together by their mother hen.

We are currently witnessing something similar play out on the international stage.  In the face of threats (to impose tariffs, end military assistance, cut aid) governments around the world face the choice of putting their own interests first, protecting their own backs, or standing in solidarity with the weakest and most vulnerable.  Our decisions may not be so far reaching and yet we all make choices that result in affirming or denying our solidarity with one another and with those most in need.  We too can be agents of gathering or scattering.  We cannot always trust those with power to use it for the good of all. We need to trust that God’s power is manifest always in gathering and never in dividing.

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