The prophet Joel, a name that means “Yahweh is God,” son of Petuel (Joel, 1:1) was one of the minor prophets of the Old Testament. Not much is known about his life, but he probably lived between the 8th and 5th centuries BC in the aftermath of the Babylonian exile and in Judah (Southern Kingdom). He was a man attentive to the voice of the Lord, responsible and committed to God.
It was to this faithful man that the Lord addressed His Word, in a social crisis caused by an invasion of locusts and a severe drought. Joel then begins to announce the Day of the Lord, denouncing the unfaithfulness and sin of the people, who have turned away from God. And he recalls the effects of such a course of action: a life destroyed.
And the prophet makes a strong appeal for a change of life. He invites all the people to conversion, a conversion of heart that allows God to dwell in each one of us: “Turn to me with all your heart with fasting, with tears, with groaning. Tear your hearts and not your garments; turn to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, long-suffering and rich in mercy” (Joel, 2:12-13).
True conversion has to come from the heart, from the depths of each one of us, totally transforming our very existence.
So many times in our lives, we turn away from the Lord, away from His grace and love. And God does not want our harm, but our happiness. In everyone’s life, despite the different paths they take, the decisions that completely change their course, there will always be a void that only God’s love can fill, and God’s presence in us will always be a light that will illuminate our lives even in the darkest and coldest moments we experience.
How many times do we perform pious acts, contribute to associations, are responsible in our communities, go to Mass every Sunday, but the Lord isn’t in our lives, isn’t in our family or social relationships; how many times do we pray to the Lord, but don’t hear the cry of the poor, the refugee, the migrant? Conversion of heart means opening our hearts to the Lord and living fraternity.
CONVERSION
Conversion does not lie in external acts, but comes from the heart. A whole and undivided heart, turned towards the Lord. Conversion therefore implies a willingness to receive the Lord into our lives, because He is with us and accompanies us. As Pope Francis tells us, “first of all, let us remember that conversion is a grace, so it must be asked of God with strength.”
Faced with the people’s attitude of repentance, God is faithful and shows His love and mercy. The people are freed from the plague of locusts, they can plant again and they will bear new and lush fruit. And they can do so with the power of God’s Spirit, who will be poured out on all humanity: “After this I will pour out my Spirit on every man, and your sons and your daughters will become prophets; your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions” (Joel, 3:1-2; cf. Acts 2:17).” Joel announces that the Spirit will be poured out on everyone, a vision that will be fully fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (cf. Acts, 2:17).
Young people, like Joel, are called to be prophets in today’s Church and world. As Pope Francis wrote in the book God Is Young: “A young person has something of the prophet and must realize this. He must be aware that he has the wings of a prophet, the attitude of a prophet, the ability to prophesy, to say, but also to do. A prophet today does have the capacity to condemn, but also to look ahead. Young people have these two qualities. They know how to condemn, even if they often don’t express their condemnation well. They also have the ability to peer into the future and look further ahead.”
A WITNESS OF SELF-GIVING
Ezequiel Ramin was one of the Comboni Missionaries with the heart of Jesus, who was able to give himself completely to the service of God and of his brothers and sisters most in need, especially the poor, the indigenous and the landless. Forty years ago, he was murdered in Brazil.
On June 24, 1985, Father Ezequiel Ramin, at the age of 32, was brutally murdered on his way back from a peace mission, in which he had visited the landless people at Fazenda Catuva to ask them to leave because they were in danger. He was caught by the bullets of the gunmen hired by the landowners. His missionary commitment went right to the end.
