Skin Deep Reform
June 26, 2024 - Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3
Yesterday, we found ourselves in 701 BC, when the Assyrian army surrounded Jerusalem during King Hezekiah's reign. Today, we move to 621 BC, the year when "the book of the law" was found "in the temple of the Lord" (2 Kings 22:8). Why was this book discovered at that particular moment?
The book was found during the reign of Josiah (640-609 BC), the grandson of King Manasseh, the worst sinner among all the kings of Judah. It was during Manasseh's reign (698-642 BC) that the Lord spoke about destroying Jerusalem (see 2 Kings 21:11-16). Josiah's father, Amon, reigned for only two years and followed the evil ways of his father. Thus, the discovery of the book of the law, along with the ministry of Jeremiah, could be seen as God's last attempt to avert the impending disaster.
What kind of book was this? Most scholars agree it was a version of the Book of Deuteronomy. This is the book where we find the commandment to love God with our whole being: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might" (Deut. 6:4-5). From this book, Jesus got all the answers to Satan's temptations (see Matt. 4:1-11). Along with the Book of Psalms and the Book of Isaiah, it is the most quoted book in the New Testament.
This book led to a religious reform under Josiah’s leadership. Josiah centralized the worship of the Lord in Jerusalem, destroyed all places of idol worship, and restored the celebration of the Passover (see 2 Kings 23). But, in the view of the biblical author, it was not enough. Eugene Peterson, in his book on Jeremiah titled "Run with the Horses: The Quest for Life at Its Best," describes it as a "skin deep reform." It did not change their way of life and it did not turn the wrath of God away from His people (see 2 Kings 23:26-27).
Josiah's reform was impacted by his tragic death at Megiddo at the hands of the Egyptian Pharaoh Neco. Ordinary people might have seen this as punishment for his "irreligiosity" toward the idols whose places of worship he destroyed. We glimpse this superstitious attitude in the Book of Jeremiah. According to Jeremiah, by worshipping idols, the people were harming themselves. But the people saw it differently. In their view, when they worshipped idols, they were "well-off and suffered no misfortune." The moment they stopped, they lacked everything and were "consumed by the sword and by famine" (Jer. 44:16-19).
Reflecting on Josiah's failed reform, I think about all the recent reforms in the Church. Have they affected our hearts and the way we live? Have they made us more like Christ? Critics point to the decline of the Church in the West, while supporters speak about a renewed community of Christ's disciples worshipping God in native languages, evangelizing with new vigor, and being open to dialogue with the contemporary world. But looking at the impact of the Church in the present world, I wonder whether Eugene Peterson's evaluation of Josiah’s reform might also apply to the Church. The tragic reality is that we can read the Bible, attend Mass on Sunday, talk about evangelization, build and rebuild the churches, yet continue to transgress God’s commandments.
It is often said that true reform begins with a change of heart. But, that is preciously the problem. Only the Lord can circumsise our hearts to enable us to live in obedience to Him. He alone can bring about that reform that all of our reforms are unable to do. Let us come to Him then and beg Him to transform our hearts because only He can shape us into the image of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ.