Today, in our Lenten journey, we are first presented with a reading from the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 18:1–9). In it, the Lord wants to clarify a false conception that was evidently held by the people of Israel and expressed in erroneous thoughts and proverbs: “What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?” (v. 2).
The Lord makes it clear that He does not want to hear such words in Israel again and that each person is responsible for his or her own actions: “Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sins shall die.” (v. 4). God then tells us how we should live to please Him, and we can summarize this in verse 9: “If a man walks in my statutes, and is careful to observe my ordinances—he is righteous, he shall surely live, says the Lord God.”
This passage offers us important guidance today as well. At times, we may run the risk of giving too much weight to the intergenerational legacies we carry with us. It would be a grave mistake to blame them for all our wrongdoings and use them as an excuse to justify a life contrary to God’s Law.