The change is a challenge

The prophet Amos in the texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary is given the insight to see the situation in his community of Israel as God sees it. This view of humanity from the eyes of God is the prophetic gift. Like all gifts from God it is meant to be shared for the good of all. Amos shares that the people are avoiding their obligation to practice justice toward the poor by redirecting their actions for God to worship and the offering of ritual sacrifice. The work of sharing their blessings, a gift from God, is being forgotten. The recent history of Christian believers in the wealthy countries may have parallels with the situation in Amos day. Our society seems to suffer from greater separation in wealth between the richest and the poorest. The false virtue of "God helping those who help themselves" is more frequently proclaimed. Economic austerity measures seem to strike deeply at the marginalized in society. The required change is a challenge. The Gospel from Matthew records the fear that change invoked in the pagan Gadarene communities when Jesus cast out demons from two possessed outcasts. Friar Jude Winkler points out that Jesus did not kill the herd of swine, but their death was the consequence of the control of their lives by the demons. The illustration is relevant to us in two ways. our addictive habits can become demons which rule our behaviour and threaten to separate ourselves from God and our loved ones. The unknown consequences of change often cause us to act in fear, reject the blessing and continue to live with the demons we have befriended.