The Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones

THIRTY-FOURTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

TUESDAY

At the opening of the Mass we heard of 'theValley of Dry Bones'. In the language of Ezechiel, in all the Bible, is no better expression of the sound of the rattling of the bones.
In our own choir chant we may feel of the repercusion of the praise of God.
As the breath of the Holy Spirit gave life to dry bones, rather than silence, the repercussions of the Holy Spirit stir us in the singing of the psalmony.

First Reading EZECHIEL 37:1-14

An attack of sneezing knocked me out from the Night Office of Reading.

On Tuesday, the reading of Ezechiel 37: 1-11 could not fail to rivet attention, no matter faltering the voice.

“This is a tremendous vision. Somehow the idea of sound is better expressed in Ezekiel than in other sacred writers . . .”

The Second Reading was by Hubert Van Zeller.

Ezechiel: Ronlad Knox translation, commentary Hubert van Zeller

By association of Scripture and Commentary, I have linked Van Zeller’s writing with the friend’s translation in Ronald Knox’s translation.

The Knox Old Testament is not available Onlne.

It is thrilling to discover an Online version of New Testament by the Ronald Knox Society website at

http://www.ronaldknoxsociety.com/index.html

EZECHIEL 37 - The Valley of dry bones 1 The Lord's power laid hold of me, and by the spirit of the Lord I was carried away and set down in the midst of the plain, which was covered with bones. 2 Round the whole extent of them he took me, where they lay thick on the plain, all of them parched quite dry. 3 Son of man, he said, can life return to these bones? Lord God, ·said I, thou knowest. 4 Then he bade me utter a prophecy over the bones: 5 Listen, dry bones, to the word of the Lord. A message to these bones from the Lord: I mean to send my spirit into you, and restore you to life. 6 Sinews shall be given you, flesh shall grow on you, and skin cover you; and I will give you breath to bring you to life again; will you doubt, then, the Lord's power? 7 So I prophesied as he had bidden me and as I prophesied a sound came and I felt a stirring, and the bones came together, each at its proper joint; under my eyes the sinews and the flesh clothed them, and the skin covered them, but there was no breath in them even now. 8 Son of man he said, prophesy now to the breath of life: give the breath of life itself this message from the Lord God: 9 Come, breath of life from the four winds, and breathe on these slain men to make them live. 10 So I prophesied as he had bidden me and the breath of life came into them, so that they lived again; and all rose to their feet, host upon host of them. 11 Then he told me Son of man, in these bones here thou seest the whole race of Israel. They are complaining that their very bones have withered away that all hope is lost, they are dead men. Translation: Ronald Knox

Second Reading From Ezekiel, Man of Signs, by Hubert van Zeller This is a tremendous vision. Somehow the idea of sound is better expressed in Ezekiel than in other sacred writers - Nahum not excepted. Between the sky-cracking claps of thunder we can hear the rattle of bones as they come together with the impact of obedience. Not an empty socket, not a finger-bone out of place. There is no mention of rain but we feel sure that a downpour followed close upon the thunder and the earthquakes; we seem to hear the water beating down upon the parched valley until eddies of it swirl and bubble round the ankles of an innumerable army of hitherto dry skeletons. But only for a minute are they skeletons. And I saw, and behold the sinews and flesh came upon them, and the skin was stretched out over them ... but there was no spirit in them. There they stood, these bodies, simply waiting to become alive. The spirit only was wanting. Surely there is a link here between Ezekiel and Genesis? It is as if a repetition of God's creative act were needed for the restoration of the body of the faithful ... the material is prepared, but for the making of the new human being there must be the breath of God. And is there not also a purely symbolical interpretation to the progressive bestowal of life? Often enough there is the body of religion when at the same time the soul is lacking: knowledge has seen to it that every sinew is in position and that there is skin to cover the frame, but that is as far as it has got. Love is absent. And it is the spirit of Love - God's Spirit - which gives life. And I prophesied as he had commanded me, and the spirit came into them and they lived. A rush of air swept down upon the lifeless bodies and they lived. We can imagine a great silence following. We see a great host of people standing silent before the face of God. "Can bones live again?" we imagine the Lord repeating to his prophet in the stillness. "Lord, you know" would be the whispered reply, and this time would be added - "that they can." The whole thing is so short: eleven verses. And what are not its possible applications? It can stand for dead souls as well as dead races; it can apply to an ideal that has been scattered and wasted as well as to a faith that has dried up in the valley of the soul. It can apply to a devotion or a friendship or a project or a prayer; it can apply to anything that has petered out under the glare of the sun. But the bones can live again. We may not say, as Judah said, We are dried up, our hope is lost. Our hope is not lost, we are not cut off permanently. Thus when we hear the invocation "send forth your Spirit and they shall be created, and you will renew the face of the earth" we can recall the vision of Ezekiel. We can recall also its fulfillment. God did send forth his Spirit, his people were created anew, and face of the earth smiled beneath the sunshine of his favor. Responsory Ps 104:30; Wis 1:7 When you send forth your Spirit they are created, and + you renew the face of the earth. V. The Spirit of the Lord has filled the whole world.+ You renew ...