Vigilance at the Coming

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 21:25-28, 34-36.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man.”

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Reflection

Our redemption is at hand. The Advent season picks up from the cues of the previous liturgical year and presents the same expectations. Something new is coming our way. There will be great changes and signs. The Gospel reading does not mean to scare us. Instead, it reminds us to be courageous and hopeful. For the shaking of all the powers of heaven is a reminder to every Christian that redemption is near.

We are waiting for our redemption. To be redeemed means to be ransomed from captivity. We are waiting for the coming of a Savior who will pay the ransom for us. The reading tells us that ransom is sure to come, that is why we need keep hope in our hearts. For the birth of this Savior is also the birth of our redemption.

Yet we are not to wait passively. We are challenged to prepare for His coming. For everyone will have to deal the moment of His coming. Everyone will have to stand before the Savior when He comes. Our very lives must be prepared for Him. The season of Advent is upon us. The Church calls us to be vigilant.

A Different Kind of King

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 18:33B-37.

Pilate said to Jesus,
"Are you the King of the Jews?"
Jesus answered, "Do you say this on your own
or have others told you about me?"
Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I?
Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me.
What have you done?"
Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world.
If my kingdom did belong to this world,
my attendants would be fighting
to keep me from being handed over to the Jews.
But as it is, my kingdom is not here."
So Pilate said to him, "Then you are a king?"
Jesus answered, "You say I am a king.
For this I was born and for this I came into the world,
to testify to the truth.
Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

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Reflection

There was a great confusion on the identity of Jesus even until hours before His death. Pontius Pilate could not comprehend why this religious leader should die for the title of "King". Jesus was fast becoming a nuisance to public order. The Jewish religious leaders appear to be irrational in their attacks against Him. What is more troublesome is Jesus' own peaceful acceptance of what is happening. Is Jesus a King or not?

We, like Pilate, often fall into the trap of boxing Jesus in our concept of King. Jesus is a different kind of King. He is not troubled by the evils of His trials. He knows everything is in place. Even when He looks powerless He is still in control. Knowing His true identity and purpose gives Him confidence that defies human courage.

He was not after political power. He was not after religious superiority. This King came calling for His sheep, sheep who are able to recognize His true identity. This is His Kingdom: the relationship between Shepherd and the sheep steeped in a love that subjugates all things.

The Church at the end of the liturgical calendar ties up together the end and the beginning of the year - that Christ is King because everything begins and ends with Him. His Kingdom is not spatial but existential, not only temporal but eternal. For anyone who accepts Christ as King, that is, who allows Jesus' love to shape His very being, allows this King to shape his very existence and share in His eternity.

Changes The End Brings

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 13:24-32.

Jesus said to his disciples:
"In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

"And then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds'
with great power and glory,
and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.

"Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you,
this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.

"But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

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Reflection

The end is always something that snaps us back to the reality of how fleeting life is. Our Sunday Gospel reading reminds us of the end of days which marks the transformation of the old order into the order of the Son of Man. What was old is totally transfigured into something new, reconfigured to the design of the Word who does not change, who remains faithful, and whose words will not pass away.

Jesus invites us to be sensitive to the signs of the times. The very seasons of life will tell us the proximity of the new age. Its coming is totally veiled in mystery - only the Father knows the time, if only to humble us that no human foreknowledge could grasp the final fulfillment of God's design. We are humbled in our ignorance but also spurred to always keep watch and be ready for the end.

The predictions of change that are celestial in proportion may sound scary but they speak of the magnitude of the change that God is about to bring. However, the Gospel also reminds us that such change is not abrupt. It has already begun. It began in when the Word became flesh, and continues as all that is flesh is reunited to the Word. The celestial changes should be foreshadowed by how much we ourselves are changing and preparing to receive our end, who is the Word, Jesus Christ.