March 24/Fourth Friday of Lent
The LORD confronts the evildoers, to destroy remembrance of them from the earth. ~ Ps 34.17
I have to say that I just don’t see it. Unscrupulous bankers and crypto traders, dishonest politicians, negligent or abusive parents, mass shooters – I don’t always see God confronting such evildoers. Often, in fact, I see the opposite: the powerful taking advantage of the powerless, the fraudulent profiting from their wrongdoing, and tyrants who trample on freedom and justice and yet escape accountability. To many of us, the wicked seem to be doing just fine. It’s the people who try to live out their values in a culture that is encouraging them to betray those values, people who strive to see others as fellow children of God rather than demonize them as different, people who endeavor to do the right thing – these are the ones who seem to be at a disadvantage in today’s world. Even the psalmist seems to pause for a moment here, as if he realizes that his assurances do not sound altogether convincing. The prosperity and success of those whom we may consider “wicked” or “evil” (and yet who but God can truly see into the human heart?) may baffle us. Certainly the suffering of seemingly innocent and good people can challenge our faith. But to his credit, the psalmist does not try to explain away the puzzle of why evil flourishes. And neither should we. What he does instead is remind us that however our hearts are broken, whatever happens to crush our spirits, God is and will always be near at hand. As we wait for the final unveiling of the mystery of God’s actions in the world, a mystery that will be shown to us only in the fullness of time, we can, indeed we must, take comfort in God’s exquisite, protecting compassion.
Loving Lord, Be close to me as I watch, helpless before evil, and cradle me with your gentle care. Amen.
To hear Stile Antico sing William Byrd’s “Quis et Homo?” (Ps 34.13-17), click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwfO2CFReBQ
For today’s readings, click here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032423.cfm
