“Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal is god, follow him.’ But the people said nothing” (1 Kings 18:21).

In the Old Testament, both the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah participated in the same sin. It was a form of idolatry in which the people would worship both the God of Israel and the gods of the surrounding regions. This participation in more than one religion is called syncretism. God likens syncretism, in the Scriptures, to an unfaithful spouse who wants the benefits of life with her spouse while acting the harlot with anyone. On Mt. Carmel, Elijah purposes a test to the Kingdom of Israel. He and the prophets of Baal will prepare a sacrifice without lighting it and the God who answers with fire is to be worshipped alone. He poses the above question to them. Notice they do not answer. I can only imagine the awkward silence felt at that moment.

The southern kingdom of Judah also would worship God up on the temple mount and would go into the Valley of Hinnom (known in Jesus’ time as Gehenna) and worship idols, even sacrificing their children to these idols. The prophets, particularly Jeremiah, warn the people that God takes note of such infidelity and will not allow the people to benefit from a relationship with Him while they play the harlot in the valley of Hinnom. For both kingdoms, their sin of syncretism led to their downfall and exile. God will not allow us to keep the benefits of a relationship with Him while we push Him away in favor of our idols.

In Matthew 6:24, Jesus reminds us we cannot serve two masters; that we cannot serve both God and mammon. Notice mammon is not capitalized. It is not an idol per se. Mammon is wealth or any other worldly pursuit we allow to take the number one position that rightly belongs to God. Most church going Catholics would say that they do not worship anyone or anything but God. That reminds me of Jeremiah 2:23, ““How can you say, ‘I am not defiled; I have not run after the Baals’? See how you behaved in the valley; consider what you have done.” The people do not acknowledge their idolatry under the pretense that they do go to the temple.

Our society has become godless and exerts much pressure to make sure all are like-minded. The third commandment to keep holy the Sabbath is so forgotten as to be rarely practiced. Even Sunday morning has been taken over by sports, shopping, chores, and other things that turn Mass (if one goes at all) into something that is “fit in” instead of prioritized — as if the day of the Lord is instead the hour of the Lord. We will know if we have idols in our lives by merely looking at our choices when it comes to the day of the Lord. Is Mass the center of the day? It is what everything else is scheduled around? Is there rest? Or is the pursuit of honor, pleasure, money, or power more sought after? Chances are if the day of the Lord has been reduced to the hour of the Lord, and if that hour of the Lord is a lesser choice when given other options, than the rest of the week is likely just as godless.

While I do sympathize with those who became distraught at churches closing because of COVID-19, it greatly saddened me that for 65-70% of self-professed Catholics the closing of churches made no difference on what they did with Sunday. The closing of ball fields and stores had a greater impact. Yet, these same self-proclaimed Catholics will expect God’s protecting hand and all the benefits of a relationship with Him, while ignoring God and disdaining His sacramental grace in favor of worldly idols and their promised benefits. Perhaps we would do well to look how that worked out for the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah.

Now is the time of Jeremiah! The call to turn our backs on our idols of wealth, honor, power, and pleasure (and that includes our disproportionate and slavish relationship with sports, entertainment, and leisure) and put God back to being our only God and worshipping Him alone. We need to cultivate that virtue of fidelity to God in our lives. The devil will use every distraction, perceived good, selfish desire, and twisted logic to deter us from seeking such fidelity. The devil wants no better for us than the lot he himself is consigned to for eternity. He wants for us the same eternal broken relationship that he has chosen by his own infidelity. He will not warn us of the price of syncretism. He will encourage us to worship anything and everything as more pertinent to our lives than God; he is all too happy to have us treat God as some here-after insurance policy. We must fight him. Hold fast to the faith and relationship Christ has in store for us. (From “Let Freedom Ring“)