Hineni (hee-neh-nee) – “Here I Am”
CS Lewis was an acknowledged agnostic, leaning towards atheism. He had described Christianity as one of the world’s great myths. It was during a conversation with fellow writer, JRR Tolkien, that Tolkien told Lewis that Christianity was indeed a myth…a myth that became fact. Lewis became awakened to the reality of Christianity. Lewis went on to write many classic works including Mere Christianity and The Screwtape Letters. He was the greatest apologist of his era.
Hineni
Chris Pratt was a wanna-be actor living in Hawaii and working as a waiter. One day he had social plans for the afternoon and was approached by a stranger who introduced himself as Henry. He told Pratt that God told him to speak to Chris and invite him to church. Chris said “yes”, abandoned his plans, and went to church with Henry. That “Yes” led him down the road to his deep faith in Christ. He never saw Henry again.
Hineni
Ananias was living in Damascus when God told him to meet with Saul and heal him of his blindness after Saul’s encounter with Christ on the road. He initially hesitated due to Saul’s reputation for torturing Christians. But he ultimately said “Yes” and his care for Saul led to the start of the career of the world’s greatest evangelist…St. Paul.
Hineni
Esther was a Jewish woman who was chosen by King Ahasuerus to be his queen after he divorced his prior queen for disobedience. The King was manipulated by his chief minister, Haman, to order the annihilation of all the Jews in the kingdom. When God, through her cousin Mordecai, asked Esther to risk her life (for it was forbidden for anyone to approach the King without being called) by asking her husband to relent on his order, Esther said “Yes”. She exposed the evil in Haman and the Jews were saved.
Hineni
Lee Strobel was a reporter in Chicago and his wife had accepted Christianity while Lee was a steadfast atheist. He took up the task to prove the fallacy of Jesus’ resurrection by doing investigative research. He interviewed many people on the subject and, in the end, was faced with clear evidence for the truth of the resurrection. When God asked him to accept Jesus as his savior, Lee said “Yes” and eventually became a minister in a large church in Texas as well as writing the book, “A Case for Christ”. Documenting his journey.
Hineni
In today’s first reading, God calls Isaiah to be his tool in trying to lead the Israelites back to Him. Isaiah had been living with a sinful community that had fallen away from God. As a matter of fact, Isaiah did not feel worthy to be in the company of God due to his sinful nature. Angels purified his lips with a burning ember and the Lord wondered out loud who He would send to accomplish His mission with His Chosen people. Isaiah responded with a resounding “Hineni”…a “Yes” asking God to choose him to do His work.
We are all called at one time or another. We may be asked to lector at our church. To attend daily mass. To frequent adoration. To lead a bible study. To not play golf on Sundays but to attend mass with your family. Even though you may be out of town for work or pleasure, you may be asked to find a church on Sunday. We are all called at some time and we have the free will to say “No” or say Hineni…”Here I Am”.
After being asked several times over several years by one his friends at his parish in Carol Stream to attend a Cursillo weekend, John finally said “Yes”. And his life has never been the same.
Hineni
