The Sign of Jonah

A Lenten Moment

The people of Nineveh had a blank slate as far as information about God goes. This is why Jesus says that they will put God’s chosen people to shame, because they took Jonah’s preaching seriously while those who actually heard the preaching of Jesus were too self-absorbed to change their lives. There is no excuse now for being unmoved by the words of Christ, for we have two thousand years of proofs of what he said: the powerful events in the history of the church, inspired art and great spiritual writings, the glories of the saints, and the way so many genocides and holocausts show the destructive power of atheistic governments and tyrants. Will the way we live our lives do? Christ asks, “do what?”

Almighty father, through the ages you have shown us your marvelous works. Let us learn from them and never cease to turn day by day toward you.