Commentary on the Gospel of
The Old Testament has been accused many times of projecting the image of a punishing, resentful, angry, spiteful God. A character closer to the Greco-Roman gods, burned with low passions, than to the good Father to whom Jesus prayed. The passages that would support this judgment are many, although their interpretation is far from being as simple as it seems. In any case, when the general idea of "a God avenging his evils" floats in the environment, fragments like that of the prophet Hosea, heard today in the first reading, shine like gold in the mud.
Hosea puts in the mouth of YAHWEH some of the most beautiful expressions of all Sacred Scripture: "when Israel was young, I loved him", "I taught him to walk, I lifted him up", "I cured him", "with human cords, with love straps I attracted him", "I leaned over and fed him", "my insides are moved", and that strong phrase with which he closes his musings, once and for all, "that I am God, and not man; holy in your midst, and not an enemy at your door".
The Old Testament time is no longer ours; however, in many ways we do relate to God as an enemy at the door and not as a saint among us... Sometimes we become angry against Him. Other times, we hide from his gaze for fear. Nor is it difficult to discover ourselves complaining at Him. By living like this, installed in any of these positions, we point to God as an adversary who rejoices in our misfortune. And we completely close the entrance to our home. Although He comes with his Peace, we treat Him as a warrior. God, however, remains. Inside or outside, sharing our table or waiting on the threshold: holy in the midst of all, even if only the poor know how to discover Him.
