Joel 4, 12-21
Let the nations rouse themselves and march to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I shall sit in judgement on all the nations around. Ply the sickle, for the harvest is ripe; come and tread, for the winepress is full; the vats are overflowing, so great is their wickedness!’ Multitude on multitude in the Valley of Decision! For the Day of Yahweh is near in the Valley of the Verdict!
Sun and moon grow dark, the stars lose their brilliance. Yahweh roars from Zion, he thunders from Jerusalem; heaven and earth tremble. But Yahweh will be a shelter for his people, a stronghold for the Israelites.Then you will know that I am Yahweh your God residing on Zion, my holy mountain. Jerusalem will then be a sanctuary, no foreigners will overrun it ever again.’ When that Day comes, the mountains will run with new wine and the hills will flow with milk, and all the stream-beds of Judah will run with water. A fountain will spring from Yahweh’s Temple and water the Gorge of the Acacias. Egypt will become a desolation, and Edom a desert waste on account of the violence done to the children of Judah whose innocent blood they shed in their country. But Judah will be inhabited for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation! ‘I shall avenge their blood and let none go unpunished,’ and Yahweh will dwell in Zion.
Today’s meditation does not refer to the text of the daily reading, but wants to build on an initiative in Ecuador in 2011, which then passed to Mexico. It was a situation when the community experienced in Ecuador a contact with criminal violence, which subsequently led to the prayer initiative “Quebrar la vara del violento”. After many people in this country joined the prayer iniatitive, the number of serious violent crimes in Ecuador were reduced.
“Quebrar la vara del violento” came to Mexico and here many people were willing to say the prayer every day.
The current news from Ecuador and the increasing violence in Mexico calls me to ask for a certain prayer once again.
The present prayer has been extended and now focuses not only on criminal violence, but also on other forms of violence. In the following, the elements of this prayer will be explained in a brief examination. Since many people are now following us through the daily speeches, I strongly recommend taking over the prayer and distribute it if it is possible. Other countries, such as Venezuela and other Latin American countries, are also strongly affected by the violence.
Because prayer has experienced enlargement, it can also be used universally and the respective emergency situations of the various countries can be taken into account. The prayer is now entitled: “Prayer for the Peoples“.
We must keep reminding ourselves of the importance of prayer and that God encourages us to pray. In this way we cooperate with the Lord and ask Him to intervene.
Now a brief interpretation of prayer:
Beloved Heavenly Father, with confidence we call to You and believe that You are rushing to the peoples´ aid. Look at the suffering of your people caused by so much unjust violence. Please intervene with your power to weaken evil.
All forms of physical violence are now addressed here: in the family sphere, in society, unjustified state violence …
Look at the confusion that is spreading through the anti-Christian powers who want to invade the Church. Enlighten and strengthen us through the Holy Spirit so that we can resist evil in Your power.
Here is meant psychological and spiritual violence, the manifold ideological manipulations by the mass media, which undermine and also fight the Christian faith. The anti-Christian spirit does not stop at the Church either, increasingly weakens it from within and even attacks the faith itself.
Keep your flock in fidelity to You and make us apostles of your paternal love, so that all men may know your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and follow Him.
True peace will come through the knowledge of the Son of God. Only when people know and honor God will there be lasting peace. That is why the proclamation of faith is important not only for the acquisition of eternal life, but also for peace that God gives.
Thus today’s concern is the request to speak this prayer frequently and to pass it on to other people, so that the right spiritual resistance is given to the forces of evil wherever they work.
The prayer again:
Beloved Heavenly Father, with confidence we call to You and believe that You are rushing to the peoples´ aid. Look at the suffering of your people caused by so much unjust violence. Please intervene with your power to weaken evil.
Look at the confusion that is spreading through the anti-Christian powers who want to invade the Church. Enlighten and strengthen us through the Holy Spirit so that we can resist evil in Your power.
Keep your flock in fidelity to You and make us apostles of your paternal love, so that all men may know your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and follow Him.