(Homily 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time-Yr. B)
With
the theme of the end of time, it does appear we are surrounded by threatening
signs. Sometimes it seems the end is so near. However, it is nearer and nearer
every single day that passes by. But let
us not bother ourselves with the preoccupations of the end of this world;
rather think about the end of you in this world. The discussion on the end
of time is one that every person is interested in, believers and non-believers
alike. However, there is a danger today
of ignoring the biblical sense of imminence, and end up parading the prediction
of a remote consummation of history. Most often than not, whenever the
issue of the end of time is raised people tend to refer to the annihilation of
the planet and the world as we perceive it. But for us Christians the ‘end of
time’ refers to the second coming of Christ. Be that as it may, the thought of
the end or the second coming of Christ should not terrify us, rather we should see it as a second chance
to live better, for his second coming is a beginning of a new world, renewed in
and through Him. Apparently, the first reading and the Gospel of today are
replete with terrifying images and messages. Contrarily, these biblical passages
fundamentally propose to us a message of trust and hope: “at that time your
people shall be delivered”; “He will gather his elect from the four winds”. The
two readings began with an identical formula: “at that time”. In the book of
Daniel it was “a time of anguish”, in the Gospel “a time of great
tribulation”. It is imperative that
whatever has a beginning must surely have an end. The sacred writer posited it
well when he said “for everything under the earth there is a season” (Qo. 3:1). The fact of the beginning
runs through the old and the New Testament (cf.
Gen. 1:1, Jn. 1:1) and the fact of a beginning could be suggestive of an
end as well.
The first reading (Dan. 12:1-3)
from the twelfth chapter of the book of Daniel announces the great trial, a
time of anguish; the persecution of the Jews by Antioch IV. Nevertheless, there
is the salvific presence of God for those who will resist to the trial, those
who will not succumb to the threats of the persecutor. History reveals that
Antioch IV ended badly, and he is a representation of the end of all enemies of
God. The victory of evil over good is momentary;
at last, victory is God’s over Satan, of good over evil. When Michael
arises there will be a time of trouble as never before, because it will be a
time to overthrow the devil, and
therefore, in this time of great trouble there will be hope for God’s children.
There
will be the final judgement in which the righteous and the wicked are
separated, the righteous to eternal life, while the wicked to eternal damnation.
This is one of the earliest passages in the Old Testament that talk about the
resurrection. As a matter of fact, the resurrection of life entails a radical
transformation; for the redeemed shall shine like the brightness of the firmament
and like stars. Be that as it may, this apocalyptic
concept of radical transformation was taken up in the New Testament, in the
synoptic. Jesus speaks of a life like that of the angels in heaven (cf. Mt. 12:25) while St. Paul speaks
of the spiritual body (cf. 1Cor. 15;
Phil. 3:21). Therein, resurrection
is about a total transformation, and not resuscitation to the same mode of
existence. In the passage, beyond the revelation of the resurrection of the
dead, there is the proclamation of an eternal life of happiness and of glory
for those who are “workers” of justice and wisdom (v.3). On the other hand, for evil men, there will be resurrection,
but a resurrection “to shame and eternal damnation” (v.2). What should bother us
should not be when but how and where am i going to spend my eternity?
In the Gospel (Mk. 13:24-32)
we meditate on what is popularly denominated as Mark’s “little apocalypse”. Interestingly, at the time when St.
Mark was writing his Gospel, the first Christian communities were living a
moment of tribulation. The message that was given to the Christian communities
in this state of trial and tribulation, was a message of trust and hope: “Know
that He is near, right at the gates” (v.29);
“They will see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (v.26); “before this generation has
passed away all these things will have taken place” (v.30). Therein, Mark talks of “tribulation” while Daniel talks
about the “time of trouble”. In both Mark and Daniel there are images of the fall
of the sun, the moon and stars. In the narrative of the last judgement, the
account of Mark differs from that of Daniel, especially in the role given to
the Son of man, even though the figure of the Son of man appeared in Daniel 7. While in Daniel He (Son of man) appeared as a symbol of the people of God at
the end, in Mark he is an individual figure, who performs the eschatological
judgement. However, some exegetes have made effort to assimilate Mark’s Son
of Man to Daniel’s by means of a harmonization of the two perceptions.
The
passage presents the famous apocalyptic discourse of Jesus (that is the
revelation of the future realities) or eschatology (of last things: death,
judgement, hell and heaven). The apocalyptic message of the Gospel links it to
the first reading. Jesus wanted to address the issue or rather the daily
question that many were raising during his time: what will be the end of the struggle between good and bad, Christ and
Satan? The answer is that at the end of time, the efficacy and power of
Christ’s Cross will be fully manifested, the end will be the victory of Christ
and his followers. And St. Mark captured the episode of the finally victory
with the words, “then they will see the Son of man coming from the cloud with
great power and glory” (v.26). But
then, the vital question we have to answer is: How do we comport ourselves or live having Christ’s final victory in
view? The discourse of Jesus is not
only referred to the end of time, but also to the present reality of the Christian
communities.
As a matter of fact, the symbolical nature of
this passage makes it somewhat difficult to grasp, because of some tensions
created in the text. Indeed, this passage could be said to be difficult to
comprehend for various motives:
►First is constituted by the literary style employed by the evangelist,
the so-called ‘apocalyptic’ style. It
is replete with expressions that are not to be taken in literary sense, for
instance: “But in these days, after that time of distress, the sun will come
falling out of the sky and the powers in the heavens will be shaken” (vv. 24-25). They are words that
indicate a great trial, a great calamity or a great change. ►Second is
incumbent on the fact that in the evangelical narrative, various elements intercept.
For instance, there is the prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem and
together there is the prophecy of the trial that the Christian community has to
bear, the “tribulation” (v.24).
there is equally the prophecy of the second glorious coming of Christ in a time
and hour that nobody knows (v.32), it is enwrapped in the absolute mystery,
that only the Father knows, there is also the prophecy of the imminent
coming of Christ: “when you see these things happening, know that he is near,
right at the gates” (v.29) and
again, “before this generation has passed away all these things will have taken
place” (v.30). ►Third we need to
take into cognizance of the fact that the apocalyptic discourse of Jesus
contains series of references and
admonitions that concern not only the first Christian community, but also the
Christian community of every time and to every single Christian.
The passage of the second reading (Heb.
10:11-14; 18) concludes the
theological highpoint of the letter to the Hebrews, and that is the contrast of
the high priesthood of Christ with the levitical priesthood. This passage
is also in line with the concern of the other two readings. In the reading, it
is written that different from the priests of the Old Testament, who multiplied
the sacrifices of expiation, Christ
offered one sacrifice, that is the sacrifice of Himself, a perfect sacrifice,
of infinite value, capable of expiating all the sins of the world. But now
he has ascended to Heaven, seated at the right hand of the Father “waiting for
when his enemies will be put under his shoes” (vv12-13). The sacrifice of Christ is unique and definitive;
through it Christ accomplished forever the forgiveness of sins and the
redemption of the world. We continue to
wait for the full manifestation of the efficacy of the sacrifice of the Cross.
There are still the enemies of our salvation, who exercise power on the world,
today we can see the power of injustice in all its diverse forms, of immorality
and of violence. But in the face of all
these, we cannot afford to lose hope or give up to the triumph of evil, until
the time when the enemies of Christ and our enemies too will be made into a
footstool.
Be that as it may, the word of God today invites us to make the
following considerations:
●The Word of God calls our attention and
admonishes that the Lord will come at
the end of time, and it will be a glorious coming, in which Christ will be
manifested in the fullness of his power, but he will also come at the end of
our life, at the end of the personal history of each one of us. However,
there is uncertainty as regards the hour, the moment of this coming. We are uncertain of when the end will be,
as well as the hour of our personal end on earth. This uncertainty shouldn’t create anguish or induce fear in us, rather
it has to help us to remain in a condition of a “vigilant waiting” and as
such to live in the grace of God. Thus, it
should propel us to an “industrious waiting or active waiting”.
●Before the final judgement (the universal
judgement), there will be a particular
judgement, which concerns us individually. Each one of us will be judged at
the end of his/her life based on the good or bad works (cf. 2Cor. 5:10; Rm. 14:10-13). In the words of prophet Hosea, “sow
righteousness for yourself and reap the harvest of mercy” (10:12). At the judgement: “he will send the angels to gather his
elect from the four winds, from the ends of the world to the ends of the sky” (Mk. 13:27). The final fate of every
man will not be the same: there will be a resurrection “of shame” and “of
everlasting disgrace” (Dan. 12:2),
for those who rejected God and the One He sent- Jesus Christ; and there will be
resurrection of glory and of happiness for the just and for those who have
worked for justice (Dan. 12:3).
Above
all else, however, presenting the discourse of Jesus, St. Mark invites us: a) Not to lose our serenity and trust, having
as our foundation, the Word of God that does not pass away (v.31). It guarantees us the presence
of God, for God is with us. However, at long last, there will be the triumph of
good over evil. b) We have to be able to
see the positive signs, the seeds of hope that emanate from the present moment
of trial and tribulation. Besides, Jesus recommends an attitude of hope and
vigilance, in the certainty that he does not abandon his people. The center of
Jesus’ discourse and the message that empowers his followers to stand firm is
in his words: “heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass
away”. The end therefore is certain but should it produce fear or faith in us?
Hope or despair? The psalmist expresses this faith and hope in God with the
words: “I keep Yahweh before me always, for with him at my right hand, nothing
can shake me” (Ps. 16:9). Reflecting
on the theme of the end, Joseph G. Donders gives it, what I will call a
maternal undertone thus:
An end has been near to us
before, when were nicely wrapped and packed in the wombs of our mothers, warm
and humid, comfortable and well protected, growing rapidly… Growing in that
way, we were at the same time growing away, growing out of the womb, growing to
the moment, that that universe, the first one we knew, would be shattered and
shaken, broken up and upset, growing to the moment that we would be forced
through a very dark tunnel out of that womb in a totally new life… At the end
of that tunnel all those were waiting who made our lives here possible, parents
and family, friends and acquaintances, and even Jesus…Jesus does not say all
this to frighten or to threaten us. Isn’t he waiting at the other end of that
tunnel together with all those we knew and who went before us, just like that
very first time, they will be there, parents and our family friends and
acquaintances, and even Jesus too. Isn’t he standing at the other side of the
door?
Yes! Let us not be afraid of the end, for
Jesus is waiting for us!! He is waiting for us at the end of life’s road!!!
(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)
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