In today's first reading, Ezekiel 1: 2-5, 24-28c. Ezekiel, who was among the exiles deported to Babylon and are miles from their beloved Temple, has a vision of the heavenly kingdom. "The hand of the Lord came upon me. As I looked, a stormwind came from the North, a huge cloud with flashing fire enveloped in brightness, from the midst of which (the midst of the fire) something gleamed like electrum. Within it were figures resembling four living creatures that looked...human....Above the firmament over their heads something like a throne could be seen, looking like sapphire. Upon it was seated, up above, one who had the appearance of a man. Upward from what resembled his waist I saw what gleamed like electrum; downward from what resembled his waist I saw what looked like fire; he was surrounded with splendor. Like the bow which appears in the clouds on a rainy day was the splendor that surrounded him. Such was the vision of the likeness of the glory of the Lord."
God appears in the least likely of places: in a foreign land, away from the Temple amidst a people who are exiled from their homeland, like so many refugees today fleeing for their lives, at the mercy of their captors, fleeing those who have taken their land by force. In the midst of darkness and despair, Ezekiel carries the message of a glorious God who stoops down from heaven to enter our darkness, to bring comfort to us in our most destitute of experiences. When we think all is lost, God appears wherever He wills and speaks to whomever He pleases.God is sovereign. God is in charge, especially at times when we think God has abandoned us, as Jesus thought had happened to Him on the cross. "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me." God identifies with us in every event of our lives, as He did with the Israelites.
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