The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me." But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.    Jonah 1:1-3
    (take a few minutes to read the very short book of Jonah)

Have you ever been asked (or told) to do something or go somewhere, and you really, really wanted to ignore the call? What happened? Did you run the other way, as Jonah did? Make lots of excuses for not doing it? Did you end up doing it anyway and then were actually glad you did?

Some years ago I was part of "Ephesians 5:19," a singing group composed of members from Abiding Presence. Among the songs we sang was "God Loves a Cheerful Giver," written by the Medical Mission Sisters. One of the verses went like this:

Jonah was a gloomy sort, he always had a sad report.
He ran from God, he ran and he set sail.
His journey's end was quite abrupt,
     a fish came by and swallowed him up.
He spent three dark and dreary days inside the whale.

You all know the story - the one we learned as very young children in Sunday School. Not only was Jonah told to go to Nineveh, a city of immoral people, but also he was instructed to confront them and tell them to turn from their wickedness. There are probably very few among us who would not have tried to decline the opportunity for such a mission. It is certainly not a pleasant (nor sometimes healthy!) task to tell people they are doing wrong; it certainly does not make you a popular person. When all else failed, and the other sailors on board had prayed to their own various gods without the resulting calm they wanted, Jonah confessed that he must be the one to blame. He had disobeyed God and it was his sin that had caused the storm, therefore, he should be the one to receive the punishment. Throwing Jonah into the sea put an end to the storm, but God was merciful and saved Jonah by letting the 'great fish,' which we translate as 'Leviathan' or 'whale,' swallow him up. There are many other instances in the scriptures of God's love for those who have challenged his authority. Even when we are disobedient, however, God still loves and cares for us. From the belly of the whale, Jonah thanked God for saving him, prayed for forgiveness, promised to make sacrifice at the temple, and do for God what had been asked of him.

Can a person live inside a whale for three days? About a century ago, there was a partially substantiated rumor in England about a whaler who had fallen into the sea and swallowed in a similar manner. When the whale was subdued and killed the stomach was cut open. They found the man unconscious, but unharmed, except for a bleaching of the skin, which never corrected itself. He was said to have no memory of the experience, but lived to a ripe old age. The report was never proven nor disproven.

Either way, Jonah did survive when the beast "spit him out" onto dry land. God reiterated his instructions to Jonah; this time he went on to Nineveh and did as he had been told. The people put on sackcloth and ashes, fasted, and prayed for mercy. The people were so desperate they even dressed their animals in sackcloth and caused them to observe the citywide fast. As a result, God had compassion and second thoughts about punishing them. Jonah, instead of dancing for joy, was angry. He felt he had been sent on a fool's errand. The people repented God relented, Jonah resented!

God is generous and forgiving to his children. Are we like Jonah? Do we want to see our enemies destroyed, or do we want to warn them of their peril and sincerely hope that they respond and turn away from their evil ways? Is this 'fish story' the opposite of Jesus' command to the disciples to become fishers of men? How would we feel if all the terrorists and evil people in the world did penance, prayed, and were forgiven? Would we also forgive and be joyful over the miracle? God will be the judge in his own time and way. We are called, like Jonah, to be his messengers, his followers, the people who call upon others to repent and to love.

Dear God, teach us to follow your call,
to go where you send us and to do your will.
Amen

Contributed by Rosemary
Sunday January 22, 2006
Liturgical Year B Week 9