The story of the boy, Samuel, who will in time grow up to be a prophet of Israel, is justly loved and familiar to Christian faithful. As you hear at Mass, YHWH (Yahweh), the living God, breaks into the soul of Samuel when he is asleep. He works on the boy when he is open to hear—in his sleep. God needs a receptive mind. Understandably, the boy thinks that a human being is speaking to him—in this case, the old priest, Eli (whose name means, “My God”). But the priest is not calling the boy; YHWH, the God of Moses, is speaking to him. The priest tells the youth to be open: Say, “Speak, Yahweh, for your servant is listening.” The story is paradigmatic, a model of prophetic existence, of what it means to be a prophet: one who hears God’s word, and at the right time, speaks it. It is also a model of right human response, in this case as instructed by Eli, and through the story, to us. Listening to the voice of God is the essence of prophetic life. And the prophets of Israel realized that this ability to “hear” (or at times, to “see”) God’s word was not intended just for them, but for every man, woman, and child living in covenant with Yahweh-God. The teaching that the essence of being in God’s covenant is to “hear His word” and to put it into practice was developed in depth by the prophet Jeremiah, and by the unknown priests or prophetic circle known as “the Deuteronomist.” The Deuteronomist wrote not only the Book of Deuteronomy, the 5th and final book as listed in the Torah (the Law), but also the books of Joshua, Judges, and, as I recall, Samuel, from which this priceless story of hearing God’s voice was taken. It is meant to teach us to listen to God.
Many of us do not sufficiently appreciate what is happening here, or what is being said. We fail to grasp the significance. What these Hebrew Scriptures are telling us is this: YOU have the ability to hear the living God, the true God, and freely to respond. Man is the hearer of the Word. Every one has a duty to hear, to listen, to obey, to put God’s word into practice, and, to share the Word with his neighbor. Some of the biblical authors thought that this power to hear the word of God was limited to the Chosen People. Others realize that it is for every human being. And that is the basis of the comical story of Jonah, the fabled Hebrew prophet who preaches to Nineveh, to men known for their savagery. To Jonah’s dismay, the Ninevites hear God’s word, and repent. The fanciful comedy of Jonah is intended to confront Jewish nationalism—the belief that Jews alone are properly children of God. It may take a holy man or women not from the Christian tradition—perhaps a Buddhist, or a Jew—to break through our Christian biases. And we often do have deaf ears to the living Word.
"Blessed are they who hear the Word of God and put it into practice.” Jesus spoke, and some men and women heard God speaking through him. Jesus spoke, and some people heard a false prophet, a fake Messiah. What do you hear? Are you listening?
