No longer shall they defile themselves with their idols, their abominations, and all their transgressions. I will deliver them from all their sins of apostasy, and cleanse them so that they may be my people and I may be their God. My servant David shall be prince over them, and there shall be one shepherd for them all; they shall live by my statutes and carefully observe my decrees. They shall live on the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where their fathers lived; they shall live on it forever, they, and their children, and their children’s children, with my servant David their prince forever. I will make with them a covenant of peace; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, and I will multiply them, and put my sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling shall be with them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD, who make Israel holy, when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever.
This passage was written by Ezekiel during the Babylonian Exile – when the Jews were being held captive in Babylon and unable to return to the Promised Land of Israel. Through Ezekiel, the Lord reaffirms His love for them (“…they may be my people and I may be their God.”) and reminds them that they remain His chosen people who will one day return to the land He promised them. We too are living in exile: sin holds us captive and prevents us from living in the Eden (Paradies) that God created for us. However, unlike the Jews of Babylon, we’re no longer waiting for our Savior. We have access to Heaven on Earth because Jesus chooses to be truly present to us in the Eucharist!
Challenge: A soul free from sin knows true joy, which is perhaps the best glimpse we can get of Heaven while on Earth. When was the last time you went to confession? There are still plenty of opportunities to get there before Easter!
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