Our readings today all deal with different aspects of being a prophet. Many of you may say that’s nothing got to do with me. Well it does because every baptised person is called to be a priest, king, and prophet. A prophet is a proclaimer of the word of God. The first reading is from the Book of Ezekiel. Ancient Israelites said you should not read this book until you were 50 or over, as it is very rich and powerful. Ezekiel starts off by saying that he is called to be a prophet. Prophecy always comes from the spirit of God; they are seized by a power beyond them. When you see something beautiful, or visited some spectacular place, you feel you have to share it. Sharing it is something common on the majority of social media sites, Facebook, Instagram, twitter. Prophecy is always a sharing, a mission. To whom is Ezekiel sent? He is sent to his fellow Israelites, to his own people. Preaching to your own is the most difficult; preaching to outsiders is much easier. Ezekiel is called to preach a challenging word to a rebellious house. We don’t like to be told that we have lost our way; this is the task of Ezekiel. We are all prophets and the church is the New Israel; and this church whether we like it or not has gone into rebellion. The recent referendum we’ve had in Ireland, 60% of our Catholic country voting for abortion. Vatican II said that the mass is the source and summit of Christian life? How many catholic go to Mass? How many Catholics have lost their faith altogether? How many Catholics are indifferent to the moral teaching of the church? The church is like the ancient house of Israel to which Ezekiel was sent. God continues to call prophets today. “These people are defiant and obstinate”. Whether they listen or not, they will know that a prophet was among them. God calls us not to be successful but to be faithful: St. Theresa. Leave long-term success to God. You have no idea what seeds you are planting. Invite someone back to Mass. Take time to challenge people who have become hostile towards the church. Will this make you popular? Certainly not. The same fate happened to Jesus in the gospel today. “He returned…” They responded with astonishment: who does he think he is? Don’t be surprised if you find this opposition when you exercise your mission as a prophet. You are called to be faithful not to be successful, whether they change or not it’s not up to you, but they will know that a prophet was among them.