In today’s reading from the Office of Readings, Moses is trying to convince Pharaoh to free the people to leave their bondage in slavery to freedom. But Pharaoh is “obstinate,” meaning stubborn, willful, hardened. An “obstinate” person is next to impossible to engage or dialogue with because they refuse to change.
Lent is the springtime thaw of the hardened soil of our heart. Our prayer and acts of penance are meant to move us from being obstinate to being receptive. As I mentioned in last week’s homily, we are being summoned to being “receptive” to the Grace of God. Receiving, rather than “grasping” our own will and desire.
“If today you hear God’s voice, harden not your hearts.” What might make you obstinate? When each one of us searches our hearts for the answer to this question, if we are truly honest with ourselves, it is the beginning of freedom, leading us into the Promised Land of the Kingdom.