Truth or Consequences

King Nebuchadnezzar said:
"Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
that you will not serve my god,
or worship the golden statue that I set up?
Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made,
whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet,
flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe,
and all the other musical instruments;
otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace;
and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?"
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar,
"There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you
in this matter.
If our God, whom we serve,
can save us from the white-hot furnace
and from your hands, O king, may he save us!
But even if he will not, know, O king,
that we will not serve your god
or worship the golden statue that you set up."

King Nebuchadnezzar's face became livid with utter rage
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual
and had some of the strongest men in his army
bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles,
"Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?"
"Assuredly, O king," they answered.
"But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt,
walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God." 
Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed,
"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him;
they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies
rather than serve or worship any god except for their own God."

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Our villain in this story us, King Nebuchadnezzar, who for purposes of ease in writing and reading, we will call Nebie, is a good example of this old saying. He had plenty of power which is evident because of the fact that all but three people bowed down to his golden god. These three stubborn (as Nebie saw them) men just would not listen.  Nebie made them a deal that he thought that they could not refuse.  Worship the statue or be thrown into a furnace.  The three refused, deciding to trust God instead.  Nebie was beside himself and commanded that the flames in the furnace be made seven times hotter than normal.  This was done and the three were bound hand and foot and tossed into the raging flames.  A bit later it was discovered that the three were walking around in the fire, unharmed, with a fourth person.  Nebie realized then that the God of the three young men was infinitely powerful because the men would disobey the royal command and their God would prove Himself by keeping the three young men safe. 

Today, all of us are called to worship alien gods.  Wealth, power, luxury are three of the oldest known to man but today we are also invited to worship technology which, no matter how complex it gets, is basically the worship of the logical arrangement of zero's and ones.   I am afraid that the smartphone is taking the place of face to face and person to person communication.  It also is interfering with our relationship to God.  How so?  The smartphone can blind us to what is actually going on around us.  The world is being squeezed into smaller and smaller packages of chips and wires and display screens.  Our faces get buried in our phones every chance we get.  We lose sight of the people around us, the homeless (who most likely do not have a smartphone) and the sick, the suffering, and the starving children are not as much fun to watch as a YouTube dancing kitten.  I am not against technology, heck, you're reading my ranting in a blog which shows that I participate in the electronic world.  I just call us to look up and about once or twice a day and see the real world around us. The electronic world is fascinating and surely technology can and does contribute to the betterment of life in many different areas.  I just caution to not fall down and worship technology as a pseudo-god.  

Finally, the three young men in our story demonstrated unfailing loyalty to God.  They would rather give themselves up to a gruesome death than to worship an idol.  What idols do you worship?  What is taking the place of God in your life today?  Are you finding time to pray? Are you finding five minutes to look at the Bible?  Does the television occupy all of your time?  What will you say to God when you stand before him after you spend fifty, sixty, seventy or eighty years on earth?  Would you be able to tell Him, looking at Him straight in the eye and say, "I didn't have time to read your book?"

Please remember to pray for the poor souls in Purgatory today.  They need your help.