Day 40. A Great and Former Glory
If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?
Psalm 11:3
A sad, solitary figure makes his way slowly through the ruins of an ancient city. Nothing remains standing in this once proud hub of trade 32 miles east of the Mediterranean Sea. The man is old, bent, but still strong. As he walks slowly over a tumble of stone blocks and shattered brick he pauses from time to time to look around. He scans the desolate landscape with an oppressive sense of futility and defeat. An aching groan escapes his lips.
The old man’s thoughts return to the days when he walked the streets of the city in its great and former glory. People, faces and names crowd back into his mind and just as suddenly fade as he returns to the matter at hand. He struggles to recall something; or find something – something he once knew; once had, now lost.
There. A stone, larger than the rest, near the top of a hill. That’s it. He moves swiftly now. With large steps and striking agility he leaps from boulder to boulder until he stands beside the great stone. It is a foundation stone. A cornerstone. He runs his fingers over its rough surface as if tenderly stroking the gravestone of a lost loved one.
A series of whispered words cascade from his lips with the somber cadence of a chant, then turn to a sigh as he falls silent. No one is there to hear this echo of an ancient song, “…mercy…endures forever.” The old man sits down beside the stone and rests his head against the cool, cracked surface.
His memory stirs to recall the day he stood not fifty yards from this spot, by the gate of the great temple of Solomon and spoke the words that had been given to him: “Hear the word of the Lord all you of Judah who enter these gates to worship the Lord! Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Reform your ways and your deeds, so that I may remain with you in this place. Put not your trust in the deceitful words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord! The temple of the Lord! The temple of the Lord!’ Only if you thoroughly reform your ways and your deeds; if each of you deals justly with his neighbor; if you no longer oppress the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow; if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place, or follow strange gods to your own harm, will I remain with you in this place, in the land which I gave your fathers long ago and forever” (Jer. 7:3-7).
The prophet Jeremiah’s words have been vindicated by the Lord, but there is no satisfaction in seeing his prophesies of doom fulfilled. Ruins are all that remain of the city of God, Jerusalem. Nor is there anything but sorrow in his heart as he looks at the place where the temple once stood. He rises and moves more slowly and deliberately, with measured, reverent steps to a place beyond the great stone. His whole attention is focused on a single point as he concentrates to discern some sign of the temple’s original configuration. He stops. A rag tangled in briars lies at his feet. Gently he reaches down and tries to free the knotted strands, surprised that even this shred has not been claimed by scavengers.
Though the fabric is discolored, there is a purple hue to it when the old prophet holds it up to the light. It is a piece of the veil – the veil that stood before the holy of holies in the heart of the temple, at the beating heart of Jerusalem. A guttural, agonized cry bursts from deep inside Jeremiah and echoes through the lonely landscape. His head tilts back and his eyes stream with tears. For a long time he sobs, rocking back and forth, as he cradles the shredded patch of cloth in his lap.
He grows silent. Somewhere far away a jackal whines and barks.
In that moment, he recalls another prophecy, another oath from the Lord. It sounds in his mind with the clear, beautiful voice of a child – a voice filled with hope:
“Look! I am bringing the city recovery and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them an abundance of lasting peace. I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel, and rebuild them as they were in the beginning. I will purify them of all the guilt they incurred by sinning against me; I will forgive all their offenses by which they sinned and rebelled against me. Then this city shall become joy for me, a name of praise and pride, before all the nations of the earth, as they hear of all the good I am doing for them...in the streets of Jerusalem now deserted...there shall yet be heard...the song of joy, the song of gladness, the song of the bridegroom, the song of the bride..." (Jer. 33:6-11)
Then Jeremiah heard something else – unfamiliar, faint – as if spoken across an ocean of time, “destroy this temple and I will rebuild it in three days…” and then, after a pause, a tender voice barely audible over the wind: “Why are you weeping? Who are you looking for…?”
Something precious has been destroyed. What will replace it does not yet stand. How then, wonders the old man, shall we live?
So begins the second semester of our discernment novena.
Note: the above narrative of Jeremiah in the ruins of the temple was inspired by a similar scene described in the novel “Hearken Unto the Voice” by Franz Werfel. I highly recommend it as a vivid description of the life of the prophet Jeremiah, and the last days of Jerusalem prior to the Babylonian captivity.
Novena Prayer
Jesus says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Pier Giorgio responds: What wealth it is to be in good health, as we are! But we have the duty of putting our health at the service of those who do not have it. To act otherwise would be to betray that gift of God.
Let us pray: Blessed Pier Giorgio, help me to seek God’s righteousness, His plan for my life and for the salvation of the world. Show me the way to self-surrender, so that I may desire nothing more than to be of service to the Lord and His Kingdom. Lead me to the table of love, where I will be satisfied.
Blessed Pier Giorgio, I ask for your intercession in obtaining from God, Who is righteous and just, all the graces necessary for my spiritual and temporal welfare. I confidently turn to you for help in my present need: (in your own words, ask for the Lord to give you greater charity in all of your relationships and to purify them from all self-interest).
A Book of Prayers in Honor of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, by Rev. Timothy E. Deeter
Make it My Own
Daily Discernment Workbook
BREAK OPEN YOUR BIBLE
1. Grieving the Loss
Read the following passages and try to understand the crushing loss experienced by the people of Jerusalem when their temple was destroyed.
Psalm 79:1-8 What does the psalmist request from God?
Lamentations 2:11-18 What is the cause of the great suffering in Jerusalem?
Jeremiah 8:18-23 Jeremiah warned the people how to avoid this outcome. Is he therefore indifferent to their destruction?
EXAMINE MY HEART
2. What I Have Lost?
Have I ever lost something that could not be restored? What was it? How did I grieve the loss?
If not, what is most precious to me, such that the loss of it would leave me inconsolable?
Conclude with
“Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be.
World without end, Amen.”
[1] All Scripture quotes from the New American Bible, unless otherwise specified