Top Scripture Verses for Parish Renewal - Part 6

We are in the sixth and final installment of our series looking at Scripture passages that are absolutely vital for parish renewal. These passages challenge the way we often approach ministry in the church, and yet they are right from Scripture, from God’s word.

So far in this series, we have looked at Matthew 28:18-19, Acts 6:1-7, Ephesians 4:11-13, Exodus 18:13-27, and Luke 19. You can read them in my previous blogs, and of course, you can read the passages for yourself and make the appropriate application to your environment.

In the first week of the series, we looked at the mission of the Church to make disciples. To wrap up, we are going to look at a vision for parish renewal and the future we are creating. Our mission tells us why we do what we do. Our vision is a picture of a preferred future. It’s where we hope to arrive one day. The vision for parish renewal comes from Ezekiel 37.

The name Ezekiel means “God strengthens.” In many ways, God was using Ezekiel to strengthen his people as they were going through a very difficult time. Ezekiel lived during the dark days of the Babylonian Captivity. In 587 BC, the Babylonians captured Jerusalem and totally decimated the city. They destroyed the Temple and the city walls, and they forced many of the inhabitants of Jerusalem into exile and to go and live in Babylon. While the exile was devastating, the greater problem was the spiritual dryness of the nation. Ezekiel felt it as a prophet and experienced it very personally.

So, God gives him a vision:

“The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he led me out in the spirit of the Lord and set me in the center of a broad valley. It was filled with bones.” (Ezekiel 37:1)

Ezekiel sees a valley littered with dry bones, filled with skeletons. This represents the spiritual dryness of the nation of Israel. They are lifeless. Just like the bones bleached and baked under the hot sun, the souls of Israel are dried up. Sometimes we feel the same dryness in our parishes.

Ezekiel responds:

“He made me walk among them in every direction. So many lay on the surface of the valley! How dry they were!” (Ezekiel 37:2)

The Spirit of God brings Ezekiel to the valley of dry bones, but he doesn’t just have him see the bones; he has Ezekiel walk in every direction around them. The sight of the dry bones must have been emotional, but walking among the bones must have intensified Ezekiel’s connection to the problems.

He notes, “How dry they were!” He feels the situation even more:

“God asked me: ‘Son of Man can these bones come back to life?’” (Ezekiel 37:3a)

God asks, “Is there any hope? Can what was dead come back to life again? Can someone who lost their faith regain it? Can churches that are empty become full and vibrant again? Can a culture that has turned its back on God turn back to him?

God asks Ezekiel if the bones can live again. Ezekiel answers with a very wise response:

“Lord God, I don’t know. You alone know that.” (Ezekiel 37:3b)

Ezekiel says he doesn’t know. Humanly speaking, of course, they could not come back to life. They are dead. They are past dead. They are dried up, and there is no life in them. But faith turns to God first before answering those questions. Faith knows the answers lie with God. God doesn’t give Ezekiel an answer to his question, but he does give him a direction.

“Then God said to me: Prophesy over these bones and say to them: Dry bones hear the word of the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37:4)

Prophesy is not a word we use much in Catholic circles. But it is something we need to learn to do. To prophesy means to speak words of blessing over the world and the people in it. It is being proactive about the blessings we want to come into the world. Prophesying is agreeing with God and speaking to our situations about what God says, and not letting the circumstances dictate to us our view of it. It is speaking words of life and goodness rather than being negative about the world. It is our baptismal call as Catholics who are baptized priests, prophets, and kings.

Ezekiel doesn’t allow the circumstances to dictate what he says. He follows God and his words. Eventually, as he speaks, the bones come back to life. What had once been lifeless dry bones now are people full of God’s life. That’s a great vision for a parish renewal, to see people come back to life in Christ. But it is not enough. God calls us to parish renewal for more than bringing people to him.

Ezekiel shows us the vision for parish renewal:

“I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath entered them and they came to life and stood on their feet an exceedingly vast army.” (Ezekiel 37:10)

An exceedingly vast army. That’s what we want to build. Now, let me describe the army we are building. Some people don’t like military terms, but we are in a spiritual battle. The battle will not be won by building up an army of people who are combative or strident. The vast army is made up of people who know that they were once dry, dead bones, and God brought them back to life by his love. The vast army is an army of people who know they once were lost but have been found by God. They know God’s great love for them and, out of an overflow of that love fight and work and engage in the life of the Church so that others will know God’s goodness and love.

The vast army are people who will participate in the life of the Church. They will serve, they will give generously, they will connect in Christian community, they will pray bold and dangerous prayers, they will risk sharing their faith so that others can know how truly good the Good News of the Gospel is.

The vast army is full of soldiers who will not accept this world as they see it in this fallen state, but will not get critical and bitter about it either. Instead, they will agree with God’s vision of the world to bring about the positive change.

Your work in the parish matters. You are raising up the exceedingly vast army. Don’t give up, don’t give up, don’t give up until that vision comes to life.

Rooting for you,
Tom