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But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard, what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, they on their part acted with cunning… But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel.” Joshua 9. Today I want to consider the power of vows in our day and age. We live in a world where values are changing faster than we can speak, therefore affecting the way vows or commitment decisions are viewed. While reading this Old Testament passage, I was intrigued because a people finally realized how powerful Israelites had become and Gibeonites decided to deceive Israelites by making a treaty with them. Israelites were known to respect their God immensely so; the treaty was solid. Israelites were bound by their word sworn to Gibeonites by the Lord, the God of Israel, so they did not attack them. I learned that we are to be very careful at what we vow to. I have been in the process of officially becoming an Anglican Dominican, the order of Preachers, which has been already a transformational journey for the decade I have been an associate. The Bible tells us that wisdom shouts in the streets. She cries out in the public square Prov 1: 20. We are to learn and gain understanding, not to become only intelligent and knowledgeable but rather wise. We discover that wisdom is more than all that; it is the ability to use knowledge in ways that support the common good. We should all review life vows or life commitments we have made so far and ask ourselves: “How engaged have I been? How helpful, how consistent have I been? If a sifter was applied, would I be removed? Will the Aramaic word [tekel] of the writing on the wall apply to us? “You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.”
We know how strong our weaknesses can be and how it is our human nature to forget the strength of the vows that bind us. “
Yes, the sacred vows that I made when I was in deep trouble” Ps 66:14. How forgetful we can be of the words we uttered when in distress! Which reminds me of Ecclesiastes 5: 4: “
When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow.” Be wise! Embark on a journey to discover divine wisdom, don’t just do things just because others find it easier to do, do them because you have made a thorough consideration with the help of God. There is a huge amount of trust in God needed for us to leave our comfortable zone without any precise promise of where we are being asked to go or what the journey will involve. This means that if our vow is to life, that’s exactly what it means, it doesn’t mean until when love or our commitment dies. Contemporary interpretation on life vows has shifted considerably in such a way that making a life commitment is no longer a serious and scary prospect, especially when we feel, we can undo it at any time. No chance for that! I don’t embrace this contemporary view.
Today’s Gospel brings out this important issue of vows and commitment in focus. Matt 26: 75: “
…Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said: ‘Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.’ And he went out and wept bitterly.” I should mention that Peter’s commitment to Jesus grew over time. At that point, the fact that Peter was present there, is already an indication of a strong commitment he had towards the Lord. Of course, we are serving our Lord who is kind, compassionate and forgiving beyond our wildest dreams. Peter was forgiven and he was given an opportunity to recant his denials (John 21:16). Peter didn’t forget. He was faced with a credible fatal threat when he denied Christ. We are absolutely candidates to both: We forget easily and are likely to disassociate with our life vows if a credible threat was placed on us. We are told that people forget 40% of what they learned in 20 minutes and 77% of what they learned in six days . Also, people forget 90% after one month . People forget 50-80% of what they’ve learned after one day and 97-98% after a month. This is why we need to keep reminding each other of the grave importance of life vows/commitment, so we understand how binding they are. If your answer to the main question has been less satisfactory, then today, hopefully things will move in the right direction. Don’t enter into life vows unadvisedly or lightly but reverently and deliberately according to the will of God. Our commitment to Jesus is lifelong and forever and ever!
(http://www.festo-didactic.co.uk/gb-en/news/forgetting-curve-its-up-to-you.htm?fbid=Z2IuZW4uNTUwLjE3LjE2LjM0Mzc).
(http://www.reneevations.com/management/ebbinghaus-curve/)
(http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infocs/study/curve.html)
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