First reading: Ex 3,1-8a.13-15
Second reading: 1Cor 10, 1-6. 10.12
Gospel: Lk 13, 1-9
Someone beyond our understanding and yet someone we can talk to. Such is the God of Israel, our God. God of compassion for all his people. God hears the cry and intervene by revealing his name to Moses. The name of God, as we find it here, has gone through very many studies. Both a Hebrew understanding of its name and Christian interpretation agree that "I am Who I am" is much more that what it says and reveal a "touching" meaning. "I am the One who's by your side"; such could be another interpretation. Within the Bible literature names hide and reveal the identity of the person; the day in which we'll understand the name God says to Moses will be the day we understand God… If the name of God, in today reading, draw us closer to Him as He feels close to us, the opposite is for the name of the pharaoh Moses will have to talk to. He has no name; while we know the name of the pharaoh that welcomed Joseph into Egypt and elected him his ministry, not this one has no name and is simply called Pharaoh. Immediately we know that no one can stand in front of the One who's name is so much beyond our own understanding; as we cannot understand a bush which burns, but is not consumed.
So much beyond and over us, yet so close. We try to understand his logic "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans?" [Lk 13, 2]; because this is what we think we need for our salvation; to understand the logic of cause and effect. But in our salvation there is no logic but the one of accepting the mystery of God in our life, the mystery of his "unreasonable love" for each one of us: "Let it alone, Sir, this year also, till I dig about it and put on manure. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down" [Lk 13, 8-9]. Who would do that to a fig tree? It is one of the few trees which does not need neither pruning, nor digging nor manure. There is no cause-effect logic in the God's love for us.
God knows the sufferings of his people and this is enough to "call him down"; yet he does not intervene alone; he needs Moses. Wouldn't be easier for YHWH simply to appear to Pharaoh and save his people? God wants to free his people; he wants them to freely chose him and accept his covenant. Freed from slavery the Israelites immediately sign up a new binding pact; they believe in Moses; they freely give him trust. God needs to withdraw himself in order to let his people live and make their choices: but unless you repent you will all likewise perish" [Lk 13, 3 and 13. 5]. Our own exodus is not a lonely journey towards our freedom, but it means to let someone digging in us, and taking care of us so that we can bear fruit.
At the same time, as missionaries in South Sudan we shall not say "Behold […] I have come seeking fruit… and I find none. Cut it down…" Let us be tireless vinedressers taking care even of the ones of whom we would say "were worse sinners than all others…"; this is not the logic of God's love.
Abuna Loro
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