"My people are foolish, they do not recognize me, they are foolish children who do not reconsider: they are right-handed for evil, ignorant for good."
Jeremiah 4:22
These shocking words recorded in the book of the prophet Jeremiah can not leave us indifferent since these are all a call to reflection. These words were spoken in relation to the people of God at that time, reminding them how far they were from the will of God and how they had turned away from Him. For all these reasons, they should ask us to ask ourselves if we are in the same situation that the people of God of the past or we can get to be. I leave here the question that I will return to some extent later when we address some aspects of Jeremiah's message.
The reason for talking about Jeremiah is very simple. Although Jeremiah lived about 2600 years ago, the similarities we can find between his time and ours are surprising. But before analyzing some aspects of the message of the prophet Jeremiah, I would like to address the question of who he was and in what circumstances he lived. I think these are fundamental questions if we want to understand your message. First of all, I would also like to point out that the message of the OT prophets is rabidly current, although they lived many centuries ago, their words are still a reason for reflection for those of us who declare ourselves Christians in the 21st century.
¿Who was and when did Jeremiah live?
The answer is found in the first three verses of the same book of Jeremiah
"Words of Jeremiah, son of Jelcias, of the priests residing in Ananot, territory of Benjamin. He received words from the Lord during the reign of Josiah the son of Ammon in Judah, the thirteenth year of his reign, and of Jehoiachin the son of Josiah, until the end of the eleventh year of the reign of Judah of Sedecias, the son of Josiah; until the deportation of Jerusalem in the fifth month. "Jeremiah 1: 1-3
As we have read, Jeremiah belongs to a family of priests. That means that it has a solid religious formation and that, by its origin, it occupies a privileged place within society. Jeremiah lives in a time of crisis, in a turbulent time, full of changes and insecurities.
As Jeremiah himself declares he was called by the Lord during the reign of Josiah. Josiah is the last great king of Judah, during his reign the borders of the kingdom are extended and the cult of the Lord is restored. Its time is known as a time of restoration. But that era of splendor is truncated tragically by the death of the king, when he goes out to meet the Egyptian troops. In some way the death of the king will mark the beginning of the end for the kingdom of Judah. From that moment on, it enters an age of instability that will end with the destruction of the Temple and the city of Jerusalem that will be accompanied by the deportation of part of the population to Babylon in the time of King Sedecias.
Although we must be prudent and recognize the differences, just as in the time of Jeremiah we also live in a time of crisis. In addition, most of us have to face a new reality, since throughout our existence we have never encountered a moment of such instability as the current one. This crisis, which in our case -Occident- and for the moment is economic, does not stop being global. And in other places it is accompanied by wars, famines, destruction, etc. We live in troubled world, where conflicts are plentiful and instead of decreasing it seems that they are increasing day after day. As if all this were not enough, all these problems are accompanied by a problem of planetary dimensions that is difficult to quantify, as are all the aspects related to the environment (global warming, acid rain, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, etc.). Our planet suffers a pressure like never before in the history of mankind. We live in a world that desperately needs a message of hope. A message that on the other hand is found in the Word of God. A message that on the other hand is within our reach and that we have the immense privilege of being able to share.
The vocation of Jeremiah
And it is in those circumstances of instability in which Jeremiah is called to speak in the name of the Lord. Jeremiah receives a special call, and this is still fundamental if we want to understand the work of Jeremiah. This call is found in Jeremiah 1: 4-10
"The Lord spoke to me: Before I formed you in the womb I chose you, before leaving the womb I consecrated you and named you prophet of the pagans. I said: Oh my Lord! Look, do not talk, I'm a boy. The Lord answered me: Do not say that you are a boy: that where I send you, you will go; what I send you, you will say. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord. The Lord stretched out his hand, touched my mouth and said, "Look, I put my words in your mouth," [...] Jeremiah 1: 4-10
His reading never ceases to amaze me and draw my attention. I like it because it speaks of a God who comes to meet us, of a God who cares for each one of us, of a God who knows us from the moment of our gestation. The text tells us that the Lord chose him before he was born. And I think that this knowledge is also extended to each one of us, because I have the conviction that in the same way that with Jeremiah, the Lord not only knows us but has great plans for each one of us, but these are conditioned to our answer.
On the other hand, Jeremiah's response never fails to draw my attention, but at the same time I can not help but feel identified with him. This, before the call, feels unable to take on the task that the Lord has entrusted. And look carefully, Jeremiah excuses himself using two arguments. Two arguments that I think to a certain extent are ours as well on many occasions. The first has to do with their abilities, "do not talk"; and, the second with his age, "I am a boy".
As men, we sometimes resist talking about God, what we believe because we think we can not speak. And those who are young sometimes excuse themselves or are afraid to speak because they think that they are still too young to talk and that they do not have enough experience. Unfortunately, it can also happen that those who have a longer trajectory are not willing to listen to them. But that limitation that we often attribute to us is ageless, in the sense that on too many occasions, regardless of the moment of our life in which we find ourselves, we apologize and resist talking. But the Lord in the same way that with Jeremiah calls us to speak, to give an account of our faith. The Lord tells Jeremiah not to be afraid, that he will be with him. I think that the Lord is also with us as long as we are willing to talk about our faith. But that will only be possible if we are able to put ourselves in their hands. Recognizing our limitations is not necessarily an inconvenience but the recognition of the need we have for the Lord to direct us. And in that sense, I have no doubt, that our life will be full of successes whenever the Lord directs us.
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