Second Chances

A Reflection on the First Reading for Sunday, June 4th, 2023:
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

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Exodus
34-6, 8-9​
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Moses rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tablets of stone. The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name, “The Lord.”

The Lord passed before Moses, and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”

And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. He said, “If now I have found favour in your sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.”

Imagine that you have a friend, and that for months you have laboured over creating a special gift for this friend. Perhaps it is for an upcoming anniversary of your friendship, and because of how very much she means to you, you have worked at putting together a token of your friendship: something that would encapsulate all that you mean to each other. From a creative hand and steady perseverance, this gift has turned out to be beautiful, and you hope with a tender heart that she will cherish it. But while she is waiting for you to finish the gift, she becomes impatient, wanting to receive the gift now, becoming jealous of the time you are spending on the gift rather than with her. In her ignorance of the nature of your work, she allows herself to be convinced that you do not love her and she turns instead to other friends – false friends – to fill the void that patience has asked of her. 

This is the story of God’s gift of tender love and covenant friendship that He bestowed on the Israelites through Moses. In the verses leading up to today’s first reading, Moses is on the mountain receiving the gift of the two tablets containing God’s commandments for His people to follow to remain close to Him. While they wait, however, impatience, jealousy, and mistrust consume them, and they turn instead to idols. Moses’ own wrath over the situation even causes him to hurl this precious gift from God at the bottom of the mountain, shattering the tablets in pieces. 

What would your reaction be to your friend’s actions? This question remains a personal examination of conscience for all of us, as it reveals the purity of the love in our hearts. 
What was God the Father’s response to His people who turned away from Him and broke the tablets He had given them? Mercy, graciousness, slowness to anger, abundance of steadfast love, and renewed fidelity to His friend. 

As we open today’s readings, Moses embarks on a second journey up the mountain to talk with God. The Lord does not turn His back on Moses or punish Him for destroying the tablets, or for his leadership of such a stiff-necked people. Rather, He offers Himself again in all of His glory to Moses; He proclaims His own name: the Lord. Inside of that name is everything that a sinner like Moses, or like the Israelites, or like you or I could ever hope for. His response is justice, yes. But it is wrapped in mercy and kindness and all the other attributes He chooses to reveal about Himself in this passage. 

Maybe in this coming week, we can all do that examination of our own consciences with the question “What would my response be?” If we find that our own mercy is lacking, we can turn our repentant hearts to the Lord, knowing that in order to show mercy to others, we must first receive it ourselves. 




Sr. Angela Burnham

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