This reading from I Samuel 17 some weeks ago really touched my heart and gave me hope when global events were tempting me to despair. It came to me as a blessing when I realized that this story is a parable of what we are being asked to live in our blessed and broken world.

Goliath is the immense power and wealth of the fossil fuel industries and they’re like that thrive on arms industries and do their best to discourage and thwart all science and technology that searches for alternatives to fossil fuels for energy to maintain our world.

Goliath is protected by armor from head to foot, as well as armed with the latest and best killing weapons of those ancient days.

David is us, who long to be artisans of peace and justice in our broken world. We long to end the reign of violence and death for so many human beings and countless other creatures of God, but we feel powerless, unarmed, naked in facing Goliath.

Let us turn to God as David did and put our trust in Him rather than in ourselves.  He will inspire us to think of our small gifts, our slingshots, and stones, choosing the best of what is available to us.

 

Then let us go forth with courage and trust in God to confront Goliath.

I have a strong feeling that this parable is meant for us today and that if we sit down and plan together in our communities, choose our slingshots, choose our five small stones, decide how we will use them, putting all our trust in God, we will be surprised at all we can achieve!

Remember always that God will not fail us in this battle.  We undertake to free our world from violence and injustice.  

We ourselves will be the first fruits – peaceful, attentive, humble, and loving to all, by God’s free gift.

 

Margaret Conroy rscj