March 29,  2019

DEW 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this First Friday in Lent, is, “Dew” - just that short  3  letter word: “dew”.

Mention of dew is made in today’s first reading from Hosea 14: 5, “I will be like the dew for Israel.”

I was thinking of going with the gospel - especially because it talks about the theme of the two Great Commandments to love - to use that  for a short homily. But then again - when I spotted that mention of dew in the first reading, I said to myself, “You’re due - D U E - to say something about D E W.”

I get that same thought every time I use the 2^nd Eucharistic Prayer - when the priest says, “Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray by sending down your Spirit upon these gifts like the dewfall.”

I always notice that prayer - that mention of dew - and it often hits me as sounding so  sort of  different.  I ask, “What is that about?”

Asking God to send down his spirit on us like the dewfall, that is  kind of different. It’s quite unique

So maybe it will sound a bit different to me in the future if  I do a short homily on it sometime - like now. We’ll see. Time will tell.

So that’s why I decided to see if I could  figure out a  few things about dew.

Dew does not appear in the New Testament - but it does appear some  42 times in Old Testament: mainly in Daniel, Judges and here in Hosea.

TASK

So I made it my task last night, to see if I could come up with a couple of thoughts  about dew for this morning.  

FIRST THE REALITY OF DEW WAS WATER

Dew is water.

Without water, there is no life.

Here in Maryland,  we often get dew on our car windows in the morning - and if it’s cold enough,  it’s frost.  Frost then is dew that got cold feet.

Here in Maryland - and many other places, if you walk out on grass in early morning you’ll  get wet feet and wet shoes.

That’s it. That’s dew  - landing especially on the ground  - on green plants and car windows - silently saying, I’m here.

SECONDLY: PRESENCE OF GOD

Dew - in Jewish theology - is like the presence of God.

Dew comes silently.

We hear rain - but dew is absolute silent - settling everywhere.

Carl Sandburg in his poem called “Fog” talks about fog coming over the city - quietly - like little cat’s feet.

Like waking up in the morning and walking outside to get the paper - we discover our feet got wet - may we feel the presence of God on our feet every morning  - like the dew.

THIRDLY: THE RESURRECTION

In Jewish theology,  the dew tells us that there is resurrection.

If there is only dust - dirt - and no water, there is no possibility of new life.

God made us of the dirt - the dust of the earth - along with water.

When there is dew on the earth - where so  many are buried - there is the possibility of new life. Dew tells us about  earth rising. Plants and the earth and the dessert can only bloom if there is bloom.