”Doomed!”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Monday, November 14, 2022

Habakkuk 2:1-4,9-20 (Forward, p. 16) CEV p. 954

Repeated at least three times over the course of this short passage, it sounds like something out of a Halloween horror flick. I can almost imagine a spooky, ghostlike, ghoul-like figure emerging from out of the darkness and endlessly moaning in a rather dismal, sepulchral voice that single word, ‘doomed’, over and over again.

So, why in the context of today’s reading, is that word coming up so frequently? It is because the people of Judah are notorious for many acts and instances of violence and injustice and so have brought down God’s wrath and judgment upon themselves. Today’s passage mentions a few of these instances:

a) They have enriched themselves at the expense of others, by ruining the lives and livelihoods of other people and reaping the benefits thereby. They have even considered themselves ‘untouchable’ in this, free or immune from any possible legal recourse or prosecution, that is, basically above the law;

b) They have used violence and oppression, intimidation and coercion, to get what they want, and no one has been able to stop them;

c) They have led people astray into drinking parties and such like, simply to get them drunk, and ridicule, disgrace and shame them—simply for the sport of it. They are told that as they put them down a notch and disgraced them, the same will happen to them;

d) They have despoiled the environment, its flora and fauna, and have been ruthless in their exploitation of people and communities;

e) They have trusted in, relied upon, inert, useless things (idols) that can do absolutely nothing to help them. Being speechless and not alive, such things are totally inadequate in terms of helping or guiding them.

I’m afraid that all too much of these indictments seem altogether too contemporary, altogether too modern. For instance, do we not have individuals, businesses and corporations that justify and do almost anything for the sake of their profit margin”. Here I think of the sweatshop labour of many Third World countries that is exploited in order to give us inexpensive clothing and other consumer goods. Or, I think of some of the big car companies that ‘allowed’ for design flaws to continue in their vehicles because a recall would have been far too expensive. They figured that a fix here or there, or an occasional ‘settlement’, were the easier and cheaper way to go. But, we are told, all of this ‘will go up in flames’, will perish.

And, do we not have individuals, companies and corporations that consider themselves above the law? They consider that they are too big, too influential, too important, to be bound by ‘the usual sanctions’. Somehow they manage to get under the radar in terms of environmental or labour standards or ethical business practices. Or, they hire all sorts of marketing and research people to subvert the data and make their case more plausible. Here, the tobacco industry comes readily to mind.

Now, I’m not sure about the ‘drinking parties’ business where people are deliberately shamed and disgraced but isn’t this happening all the time via the social media, especially when it comes to the political or entertainment worlds? People are continually making up slanderous stories, fabricating dirt—often with little or no substance or evidence--about other people.

And, as for despoiling the environment and ruining communities, our extraction industries certainly have been guilty of this over the years. Here I think of instances from the past, the ‘tar ponds’ of Sydney in Cape Britain, for instance, or the heavily polluted waters of Hamilton Bay, but fortunately, both have been cleaned up. But, does this not continue elsewhere, even today? In this context then, how about the waters and water systems of various northern First Nations communities, polluted, with seemingly no remedy, by mercury contamination with no end in sight?

And well, to conclude our indictments: trusting, relying upon useless, inert, inanimate objects—like money, for instance, or other material possessions—seems to be almost our way of life!

I’m afraid that all too much of this could apply equally to us and to our world today. And yet, there is good news:

a) Righteousness will ultimately prevail: “Just as waters fill the sea, the land will be filled with people who know and honour the Lord” (v. 14);

b) Furthermore, the Lord is here and has not forgotten us: “Let all the world be silent—the Lord is present in his holy temple” (verse 20).

So let us who know the Lord, remember these words of ‘doom’ and live accordingly. Let us make sure that we honour Him and celebrate and remember His presence, that He is ever with us, to help us and to guide us in our ways. Amen.

Forward notes: “I will stand at my watchpost, and station myself on the rampart; I will keep watch to see what he will say to me, and what he will answer concerning my complaint. Then the Lord answered me and said: Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. For there is still a vision for the appointed time; it speaks of the end, and does not lie. If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay” (verses 1-2).

“I’ve been blessed in my life to visit many ancient castles. I’ve walked many ramparts that looked out over modern streets and tried to visualize an enemy coming over distant hills and imagine the scramble to shut the gates.

“Life is like that sometimes. It seems like we hold the immobile high ground against fear and despair and other enemies of our souls, yet we worry our resistance will break. These verses remind us that patience is the antidote to despair. Though it seems impossible, our redemption cometh. We won’t wait for it forever.”

MOVING FORWARD: “What enemy threatens your defenses? Pray for patience and strength.”