Converting Visions into Reality (Wednesday, Week 19, Year 2)

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Ezekiel was among the prophets that prophesied during the Babylonian exile when the people of Judah were languishing in a foreign land. In Ezekiel’s prophetic visions, just as in some other prophecies, were warnings, messages of woes, lamentations, hope and promises of a better future: all these were for good, to inject hope into the people and to inspire them to live more faithfully. In one of his visions (Ezekiel 9), he saw Jerusalem being destroyed because of the great sins of the people. In that same vision, he saw that those who have been faithful to God and to His laws, those who groaned over all the sins that were committed in Jerusalem, were being marked to be saved. In one hand, there would be destruction of the wicked and all structures of sin and on the other hand, there would be redemption and salvation of the innocent.

This vision may serve as a foretaste or a reminder of what may happen on the Last Day, the Day of Judgment, after which the Kingdom of God would be fully established. But by the coming of Christ, the work for the establishment of this Kingdom has already begun and is moving towards its completion. As followers of Christ, we all are co-workers in the site, working day and night towards the full realization of our dream, a dream for a better world, a better Kingdom where justice, peace, love and joy will reign. 

What are the concrete actions that we must take for the full actualization of our ultimate vision/dream, the vision of the kingdom? We must dismantle structures of injustice and enmity; we must seek reconciliation with God and with one another; we must work for peace; we must agree with one another; we must pray with and for one another, and so on as clearly expressed in the gospel especially in today’s gospel (Matt. 18:15-20). All in all, our beautiful vision of what the future should be or may look like must be accompanied by concrete tasks if it must translate into a reality. The same message applies to other aspects of our existence. Anyone who has a vision of a great future must work it out because A VISION WITHOUT A TASK IS A DAYDREAM. 

 

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