Third Sunday of Advent, December 11, 2022

What kind of Messiah are you waiting for?

Matthew 11: 2–11

Now John had heard in prison what Christ was doing and he sent his disciples to ask him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to expect someone else?’ Jesus answered, ‘Go back and tell John what you hear and see; the blind see again, and the lame walk, those suffering from virulent skin-diseases are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life and the good news is proclaimed to the poor; and blessed is anyone who does not find me a cause of falling.’ As the men were leaving, Jesus began to talk to the people about John, ‘What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swaying in the breeze? No? Then what did you go out to see? A man wearing fine clothes? Look, those who wear fine clothes are to be found in palaces. Then what did you go out for? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet: he is the one of whom scripture says: Look, I am going to send my messenger in front of you to prepare your way before you. ‘In truth I tell you, of all the children born to women, there has never been anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of Heaven is greater than he.”

Music Meditations

• Come Thou Long Expected Jesus—Chris Tomlin
• People Look East-Marty Haugen
• Come thou Font of Every Blessing— with lyrics by Chris Rice or by Elenyi Music
• O Come O Come Emanuel—Enya
• The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns

Opening Prayer

Jesus, we talk of your coming, of your coming again. But you have never really gone away. You have been with humanity since the beginning of time, have been with us throughout history, and are with us now and forever. Help us to remember that and live in the “now” of your presence, and help us to live truly in your presence, modeling our very lives after the humility and selflessness, the forgiveness and compassion which was your true self.

Companions for the Journey

From “First Impressions” a preaching service of the Southern Dominican Province:

Boy, a lot has changed in the life of John the Baptist since last Sunday’s gospel! He has been center stage for us these two middle weeks of Advent. Last week he was out in the desert, the fiery preacher and precursor for Jesus. Remember his warning about “the one who is coming” after him, the one who would have a winnowing fan in his hand to clear out all the chaff from the threshing floor and burn it in unquenchable fire? Well, that was then, in chapter 3—this is now—in chapter 11. A lot has happened since John’s earlier preaching. Jesus has taken up his ministry of preaching and healing and John has been arrested for speaking out against Herod’s marrying Herodias, the wife of Philip, Herod’s brother.

Now John is in prison and he sends his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” What happened to that sure-fired preacher we met earlier? He seemed pretty sure he knew what God had in mind and what the one to come would be like. Initially John was quite taken by Jesus and when Jesus came to him to be baptized in the Jordan, John demurred, “I should be baptized by you, yet you come to me!” (Mt. 3: 14) We sense, in the question John sends through his disciples to Jesus, that John is disappointed or confused in how his successor Jesus is following the game plan John initiated. Why was it taking Jesus so long to purge the world? Where was the judgement on the world and the fire for the chaff John promised in last Sunday’s gospel? Why didn’t the religious leaders embrace Jesus? Others would have been disappointed as well. Jesus wasn’t pulling the country together along nationalistic lines, wasn’t organizing the people to fight for their freedom from the Romans.

Sometimes when people go through a life-changing religious experience and they come to a deeper and more personal experience of Jesus in their lives, the initial moments are quite rosy. (Many people, when they recall their childhood faith, also have similar memories of a time when they felt they had stronger faith because they questioned less.) After a major faith awakening there is a sense of illumination, daily life takes on new meaning and having a sense of Jesus ready and present to their prayers gives a great feeling of companionship. But as life goes on, that sense of immediacy often fades, especially in the harsh light of the daily grind or at moments when we are jarred out of our routine by the harsh realities of life. Where, we ask, is Jesus now that we need him? Why isn’t he helping us solve our current problem? Isn’t our faith in him supposed to protect us from the difficulties we are now facing? Were we wrong to have put so much trust in him at the start? Faith doesn’t take the shape we think it should—or rather, if today’s gospel is any indication–Jesus doesn’t always fit our preconceptions. Besides the personal issues Christians face there are larger ones we face as a community of believers. Where is Jesus’ power in the world these days when we are experiencing so many manifestations of darker powers? What difference are we making to bring about a world of peace? Do our individual and communal efforts at reconciliation make any difference? So, we may find ourselves asking at worship today the question John raises, “Are you the one who is to come or should we look for another?” Are we being asked to trust this Advent that God is really at work in our lives, though in often less obvious or “impressive” ways? “Lead us not into temptation...” we will pray today before we receive the eucharist. Is our temptation to be disappointed in God’s pace, timing and manner of response to our urgent prayers?

What answer will Jesus send back to allay John’s doubts and reinforce his faith in prison? Jesus doesn’t impatiently dismiss the emissaries from John—and that was good news for John and comforting to us as well. We are not ignored in our faith struggles to understand who Jesus is for us at this stage of our journey. Jesus does respond to the question John sends, though at first, it seems indirect. Wouldn’t a simple “yes” or “no” have been appropriate to such an urgent question? Instead Jesus refers to Isaiah 35: 5-6 (“Then will the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; then will the lame leap like a stag, then the tongue of the dumb will sing.”) and 61: 1 (“God has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly, to heal the broken hearted.”)

John would certainly be familiar with the prophet Isaiah’s description of the one God would send. Guided by the Jesus’ Isaiah reference, John would also have learned that Jesus was going to put aside the more militaristic messianic anticipations some of the people had and was going to be the kind of gentle messiah the prophet Isaiah had anticipated. However, Jesus did not give a thundering response to John’s question, did not draw down lighting or cause the Jordan to stop flowing to reassure John’s doubts. That would have coerced faith. Instead, John like us, was invited to draw his own conclusions and then decide whether to put faith in Jesus. John was urged to see God at work in Jesus’ reaching out to those in most need, bringing healing to the sick, forgiveness to sinners and preaching good news to all who had come to hear him. Jesus was God’s sure sign that God had heard the cry of the people and had come to address them definitively!

Let’s not overly spiritualize Jesus’ statements to John’s disciples about the blind, lame, lepers, deaf and poor. They are very real among us, their numbers grow daily in the economic downturn our world is experiencing and the loss of jobs due to the terrorists’ attacks. (“Food for Survival,” one of New York City’s major food pantries just made a report that one million people, one out of eight New Yorkers rely on the city’s food pantries to help them fight hunger. NY Times, December 2, 2001) Jesus really did help the forgotten and those in need. His actions on their behalf were a proof to John that God was working through him, for they were the ones God has always shown concern for and considered precious. Though forgotten by a world distracted by war, possessions, fashion, glamor and high tech, the poor are noticed by God. Jesus is the undeniable proof.

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

What did you go out to the desert to see?

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

What do you think is meant by the coming of Jesus into our lives? What changes will happen? Will you like those changes, or are you happy with the world as it is for you personally right now? By my words and actions do people around me experience Jesus in their lives? When have I recognized Jesus in someone who needed my help? Am I proclaiming “good news” to the poor? Do I encounter the poor in my life? Do I even see the poor in my life? In this gospel passage, John’s plans have changed and his life has taken a turn for the worse; still he has hope… For what do I hope, right here, right now? Am I waiting for Jesus to make the blind see, the lame walk, those suffering from diseases cured, the deaf hear, the dead raised to life, and to bring good news to the poor? Just who are the blind, the deaf, the lame, the suffering in my life? What help or even comfort am I bringing to them? John expected a “fire and brimstone” Jesus; instead he got a Jesus of compassion and forgiveness. What kind of Jesus is our culture looking for? What kind of Jesus am I looking for? Advent is really not about waiting for the Baby Jesus to be born; the historical Jesus has come and gone. So what are we waiting for? Are we sitting back and waiting for God to fix the messy world we inhabit? If not God, who? Advent clashes with the Christmas shopping season; how can we be more true to Advent with a better use of our resources, both personal and environmental? Do we really believe that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s plan? Does this give us hope or cause a shiver of apprehension? The world of John the Baptist and of Jesus was a mess, especially for the Jewish people. The rich were few but powerful, and exploited the poor. Poverty was rife, as were disease and problems caused by that poverty. The Romans were constantly rattling their sabers at the Jewish people, threatening their sovereignty and their very existence as a people. What messes are we facing as a people or individually in our own lives at this time? Where do we find hope? Jesus tells his disciples to go and see John in prison and tell him what they have heard and seen about Him (Jesus). Are there peoples whom we need to tell about Jesus? What are some of their particular prisons? What do we say about Jesus to these peoples? What brings the presence of Christ to us today?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Imagine that you are John the Baptist, the prophet who convinced people to change their hearts in advance of the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven. Now you are in prison, put there by Herod who feared your popularity among the Jewish people, (After all HE is king, and any popular figure is seen as a threat) Look around you: what is this prison like? Is it hot and stuffy or cold and damp? Is it clean or filthy? What do they feed you? How do the guards treat you? Sitting in your cell, you look back on your life, trying to piece together how you got here in the first place. So you reminisce: What was your childhood like? When did you realize that you had a special calling from God? Why did you go out into the desert and live as you did? What was with the clothes and the locusts and wild honey? Remember what it was like at the river Jordan when people came in droves to hear you preach and to be baptized? Try to imagine the arrival of the Pharisees and Sadducees on the scene. How did they react when you called them out for assuming they were special because they were descended from Abraham? Do you remember when you called them a brood of vipers? Did you seek out confrontation, or did confrontation seek you out? Jesus was all grown up and just beginning His ministry when he approached you that day by the River Jordan. When you hesitated to baptize Jesus, and when He insisted that you do so because it was what “uprightness” demanded, were you still a little reluctant to do so? Did you hear the voice from heaven calling Jesus God’s beloved, or was it only Jesus who heard? If you heard the voice of God, why, now that you are in prison, do you have such concern about what people told you that Jesus was doing and saying that you send some of you own disciples to talk to Jesus himself? Was it frustrating to be locked up and away from any ability to interact with Jesus directly? Specifically, does His message seem a little too “soft” on repentance and a little long on compassion for your taste? Do you ever hear back from your disciples? If so, what do you think about what they told you upon their return? Do you agree with what Jesus said about you? Just how DO you view Jesus?

Now project yourself into our time and place where we can only know about Jesus from what others have told us. Does what I have heard give me hope? In what way am I called to advance the message of Jesus as John did? What sacrifices might Ï be called upon to make to advance the coming of the Kingdom of God?

Poetic Reflection:

The late Stanford poet Denise Levertov ponders two approaches to the coming of the kingdom. Which do you prefer?

“Sparks”

In today’s mail a poem quotes from Ecclesiastes: Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might: for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. A letter with it discloses, in its words and between them, a life opening, fearful, fearless, thousand-eyed, a field of sparks that move swiftly in darkness, to and from a center. He is beginning to live. The threat of world’s end is the old threat. “Prepare for the world to come as thou shouldst die tomorrow” says the Book of Delight, and: “Prepare for this world as thou shouldst live forever.”

Poetic Reflection:

Is the poet speaking of the first coming or the second coming?

“Advent Calendar”

He will come like last leaf's fall. One night when the November wind has flayed the trees to bone, and earth wakes choking on the mould, the soft shroud's folding. He will come like the frost. One morning when the shrinking earth opens on mist, to find itself arrested in the net of alien, sword-set beauty. He will come like dark. One evening when the bursting red December sun draws up the sheet and penny-masks its eye to yield the star-snowed fields of sky. He will come, will come will come like crying in the night, like blood, like breaking, as the earth writhes to toss him free. He will come like child.

—Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury

Poetic Reflection:

What is my part in creating a “new Eden”?

And then all that has divided us will merge And then compassion will be wedded to power And then softness will come to a world that is harsh and unkind And then both men and women will be gentle And then no person will be subject to another’s will And then all will be rich and free and varied And then the greed of some will give way to the needs of many And then all will share equally in the Earth’s abundance And then all will care for the sick and the weak and the old And then all will nourish the young And then all will cherish life’s creatures And then all will live in harmony with each other and the Earth And then everywhere will be called Eden once again.

—Judy Chicago

Closing Prayer

From Karl Rahner:

Behold, you come. And your coming is neither past nor future, but the present, which has only to reach its fulfillment. Now it is the one single hour of your Advent, at the end of which we too shall have found out that you have really come. O God who is to come, grant me the grace to live, now, in the hour of your Advent, in such a way that I may merit to live in you forever, in the blissful hour of your eternity.

Second Sunday of Advent, December 4, 2022

How do we prepare our hearts for Christ?

Matthew 3: 1–12

In those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea [and] saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: “A voice of one crying out in the desert,‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.’” John wore clothing made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.

And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire.

His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

Music Meditations

• Each Winter As The Year Grows Older--Marty Haugen
• Come Thou Long Expected Jesus--Chris Tomlin
• O Come Emmanuel--Enya
• The People Who Walked In Darkness Have Seen a Great Light--Handel

Opening Prayer

Lord, the world is such a mess, as it was when you first entered it. Help us to see beyond the chaos and despair of a broken world, a fractured political climate in our country, a sometimes divided church and our frequently divided hearts to find your presence, ever faithful, steering the barque of humanity into a safe harbor. Help us to pick up an oar and row with you towards the shores of eternal life.

Companions for the Journey

Spoiler alert: John the Baptist was not heralding the coming of Jesus into the world; he was heralding the coming of Jesus into His public ministry. Advent is less about anticipating the birth of Jesus and more about anticipating the birth of the Kingdom on earth through Jesus.

From “First Impressions”, a Service of the Southern Dominican Province, 2007:

If they had it MTV in Jesus’ day, John the Baptist would have been a star! He was the closest thing the first century had to a rock star. He dressed the part: camel’s-hair clothing and a leather belt. He ate exotic foods-locusts and wild honey. He was up front and in your face. He could not help getting people’s attention: kicking up the waters of the Jordan, putting his fingers in the face of the insincere, shaking up the comfortable by calling them names---” You brood of vipers!” He was an attention-getter because he had something to say. “ Repent ... straighten things up!”

Recently I had long car trip to make. I left the house at 5 in the in the morning, and drove two hours in the dark. After four hours on the road I realized I hadn’t been fully alert: I had traveled a couple of miles on “cruise control.” I wasn’t sleeping exactly, but I was almost in a hypnotic state. I was lucky that traffic was light. I was lucky that no fast responses were required during those couple miles. I pulled over and took a nap. You can’t travel at 65 m.p.h. and not be fully awake! It’s scary! And it is dangerous!

Life gets like that. We move along at 65 m.p.h. on cruise control. Maybe we haven’t crashed, but is that any way to go through life? What are we missing along the way? Where is our attention? Where is our focus? Have we been missing those people and parts of our life that count? Have we lost a sense of priorities? This time of the year, with all its hustle and bustle, we are especially prone to “cruise control.” We’re on automatic pilot, we put our heads down and plunge through the season. What we need is a wake-up call. And we sometimes get it. It can be as strident and in-your-face as John the Baptist was.

For example. A spouse stops us in our tracks in a gentle, or not-so gentle, way and gives us a wake-up call. In one way or another he or she reminds us that we have been traveling through life on cruise control; we have been absent from life, marriage or from our children. A friend confronts us; we have broken a promise or taken the friend for granted. The voice of John the Baptist comes like that in various modern disguises. That’s how our God speaks to us. In one way or another we hear the call, “ Repent.” “ Straighten things up!” Sometimes the voice is harsh. Sometimes it is gentle. But if we listen to the voice, we realize that it is speaking the truth to us.

Most likely our first response is sorrow. But what is there to be sorry about? As blessed as this season is, it does touch into certain compulsions we have. When we hear the summons to “repent,” we may realize that we have lived only on the surface of life. We have been searching for happiness in the wrong places, thinking that what will make us happy lies in the newest, fastest, cleverest device or the latest fashion. What new gadget or toy are they pushing on tv or on the internet this season that we just can’t wait to get our hands on? One recent survey said that the less time parents spend with their children, the more gifts they buy them. Our society desires more and more; but we seem to have less and less of what really counts. At this period of Advent we ask ourselves if we are investing a lot of our energies in the wrong places. We have to admit with sorrow that our quest for happiness has disappointed us. We have let others identify for us what will make us happy and we find it wanting.

Why else do we come here to celebrate Eucharist together week after week? It is not merely because we’re keeping a religious rule. It’s not just because we are concerned about the next life and we want to guarantee a place there for ourselves. No, it’s about this life: we are hoping to find meaning, sanity and balance in our lives. We want to see, in the dark that surrounds us, a way illumined by a lasting light. We want to focus on what is real for ourselves and for our families.

As harsh as John the Baptist sounded he did draw a crowd. He was popular because they needed help and he was a voice of clarity and sanity. They and we hear his promise: someone is coming bearing a fire for spirits that are chilled by boredom, aimlessness and routine. John promises that our spirits, which are bloated with excess, can be revived by a new spirit. What has been chilled and feels tepid in our spirits can be heated again by the fire of the coming Christ. He is coming, John tells us, with a baptism of the Spirit and fire. That must have been an exciting message to hear! We cannot revive our spirits on our own. We need what John promises us--- the gift of a renewed spirit. Unlike other gifts at this buying season, this spirit of renewal cannot be bought or charged to Visa. It cannot be owned and possessed only by the rich and powerful. It can’t be cornered and monopolized by any special religious elite. It is a gift that only God can give, a baptism, as John says, “with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Behind John’s voice is God speaking with love and concern for us. God has sent someone out looking for us to bring us home, the one mightier than John, who will baptize with water and the Spirit. With that Spirit guiding us we will not lose our way.

With that fire burning within us we will share what we believe with others who might still be on “cruise control.”

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight his paths

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

Have there been any "desert places" in the landscape of your memory? How were you affected by them? What did you learn? Have you known anyone who has come to a place in their life where they needed to make a real change in the way they were living that life? Was there an event that signaled/marked that person’s decision? Have you ever felt the love of another so deeply that you wanted to change your life? Can you remember a time when you felt a deep desire to have God come into your life? Would a public act of penance have been authentic? What do you think it would feel like to be that caught up in God’s love for you that you want to change the way you lived your life? Has there ever been in a time in your life when you felt that you were unworthy of God’s love and trust for you? How is public expression of repentance different from a private acknowledgment of personal sinfulness? What do you think would happen in your church community if every year even a few people would take on the role of sincerely publicly acknowledging their repentance for the past and publicly commit to changing the way they lived their life? At this time in history, most people looked upon the Pharisees and Sadducees with great respect. Why would they be coming to John? What did John see in them that caused him to treat them with such disdain? Who would John see as the Pharisees and Sadducees of our time? How does this text ask you to think about your preparation for Christmas? In what ways do you want to reform your life? What in your life needs to be improved to prepare for the coming of Christ? From Jude Siciliano, O.P.: What can I do this Advent to allow some time for reflection?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

As I reflect on this gospel, I try to imagine John the Baptist preaching to the crowds about the beginning of Jesus' ministry: I see a small, wiry man, dressed in rags and tatters. His clothes are dirty and hang off his too-thin frame. They say he eats little--locusts and honey gathered from the parched land he and the other Essene inhabit in the hills. Stranger and stranger. But there is something about the man that forces me to stay and listen to what he has to say. His voice, his eyes, speak eloquently of the passion which drives him…..The conviction that time is short and the kingdom of Heaven is near rings out over the crowd. He makes us feel that we and the world we inhabit are at a crossroads. Something momentous is upon us. His name is Jesus. We must repent. Repent. Repentance-Metanoia--more than a confession of sins. More than guilt and anxiety. More than fear of the Lord's wrath. Metanoia. A complete change of heart. To turn one's very soul around. Away from self-centeredness, selfishness and self-aggrandizement. Away from meanness, from sniping at others to make myself more secure. Away from greed, clutching frantically at what I have, holding it close because of anxiety that there might not be enough. Enough time, enough money, enough attention, enough love. We are called to turn our minds and hearts Away from evil. From envy of what others have achieved or acquired, Envy fostered by the fear that someone might just have more of something than I do. Metanoia. A turning around. A turning back. Back to goodness. Back to kindness. Back to loving. Back to God.

How would I respond to John the Baptist if I were sitting listening to him? What does his life and message say to me? Would my heart be touched by the Spirit and would I experience the deep conviction that I must, MUST realign my will to God's a live my life accordingly? Do I realize the hardships this might entail? Do I realize what pleasures I might have to forgo or defenses I might have to abandon in order to be open to God's call, to God's living presence? I sit with this story, trying to integrate it into my own circumstances, my own life. I speak to Jesus about by my desire to change my heart, to forgive, to let go of resentments, to align my heart with his. I give thanks for this time together with him…..

A Reflection in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

The gospel section is not about repentance, although that is often how we translate metanoia. What John call us to is a complete change of heart, and change of priorities so that both align more closely with the heart of Jesus. Metanoia, then, is about letting go of the ME I do not want to be an becoming the ME I want to be. The ME I don’t want to be is weighed down with attachments to illusions about myself that keep me mired in a certain way of acting and reacting. What illusions about myself, about others around me, or the world at large am I clinging to because those illusions are so familiar? What are the temptations in life that I am prey to? If I could pick just one habit or knee-jerk reaction to work on this advent, what would it be? In what way do I want to be different at the end of Advent that I am right now? Does personal change require courage? Am I often discouraged because this will take a LOT of work on my part? What is the role of grace in this endeavor? What is the role of prayer?

Poetic Reflection:

How does Mary Oliver capture our need to get ready for the coming of Christ?
What is the role of compassion, of hope and joy in all of this preparation?

“Making the House Ready for the Lord”

Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but
still nothing is as shining as it should be
for you. Under the sink, for example, is an
uproar of mice—it is the season of their
many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves
and through the walls the squirrels
have gnawed their ragged entrances—but it is the season
when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And
the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard
while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;
what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling
in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly
up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will
come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,
the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose, know
that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,
as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.

Reprinted from Thirst by Mary Oliver Copyright ©2006 by Mary Oliver By permission of Beacon Press, www.beacon.org

Closing Prayer

Lord, I know that I want to change some things about myself, about my life. I know this is not easy. I know, too, that this cannot be done on my own. I need your grace and your care to be attentive to what I really want to be, how I really want to be in order to love others more and love you more through them. Help me to be aware of my own faults and more tolerant of the faults of others. Be with me on this Advent journey toward integrity and wholeness.

First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2022

We do not know the time of Jesus’ return / we must be prepared

Matthew 24: 37–44

‘As it was in Noah’s day, so will it be when the Son of man comes.

For in those days before the Flood people were eating, drinking, taking wives, taking husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark,

and they suspected nothing till the Flood came and swept them all away. This is what it will be like when the Son of man comes.

Then of two men in the fields, one is taken, one left; of two women grinding at the mill, one is taken, one left.

‘So stay awake, because you do not know the day when your master is coming.

You may be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what time of the night the burglar would come, he would have stayed awake and would not have allowed anyone to break through the wall of his house.

Therefore, you too must stand ready because the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’

Music Meditations

• O Come, O Come Emmanuel
• Open My Eyes, Lord

Opening Prayer

Lord make me available to your daily appearances in my life. Help me to see that you are there in the people I meet, the situations I face. Help me to live fully in the present, with an eye to the future that comes to all of us. Help me to live in the eternal now. Help me to trust in you completely.

Companions for the Journey

From “First Impressions” 2014, a service of the Southern Dominican Province:
Note: refers to Mark 13: 37-37, the gospel for 1st Sunday of Advent, year B

The Israelites in exile had no hope for their recovery and return to Israel. The Babylonian captivity lasted for about 50 years and, judging from their present situation, the exiles had no concrete reason to hope. Despite their sins (”our guilt carries us away like the wind”), Israel’s prayer recalls that God created the people (”You, Lord, are our father, our redeemer who are named forever.”) and how once God deemed them from slavery. The prayer articulates that neither the enslaved people, nor we, can save ourselves from our present situation. The present is a period of suffering for large populations around the globe. The world can’t get better on its own. We need divine intervention: we need Advent hope, we need the coming of Christ. We can’t merely “prepare for Christmas” without that help. We need and pray for an intervention by God. We need a Messiah.

The gospel is sober and leaves little doubt that the master is returning to the house to assert his authority. This passage is part of a section called “the Little Apocalypse,” I.e. a miniature “revealing.” The text sets up Advent for us. We are not yet expecting the birth of the little baby Jesus, but the coming of Jesus, the master, who unexpectedly breaks into our routine in the middle of the night when we may be dozing off, or fully asleep.  Our usual routine is shattered when God enters our world. In our lives we may have placed too much security on what was close at hand and seemed secure. But our accustomed world can easily collapse, like the dollar in recession. Advent asks how secure is the ground we stand on? When God enters our lives our self-sufficiency will not be enough for us.

Don’t we sense that our weary and battered world is not what God has in mind for us? God has plans to bring about another world through Jesus Christ. Those who are ready and awake will know when God comes and how to respond to God’s presence. Advent awakens us to realize we have invested our treasure in the wrong places and that world must end. The master, whom we serve, is coming to help us awaken from sleep so we can put aside our false world and rebuild our house on rock. “God is faithful” --  Paul’s words will accompany us through any change or adjustment we must make in our lives. This is the God Isaiah evokes as he imagines us as clay to be formed by our God, “the potter,” and reminds us, “we are all the work of your hands.”

Today’s selection from Mark is a gospel for hard times. This was certainly true for the community for whom Mark wrote. To name just a few problems the early Christian community faced: Jerusalem was destroyed in the year 70; Christians were persecuted by both religious and political authorities; the new faith had torn families apart; false prophets were predicting Christ’s imminent return. Who could blame these early Christians for asking, “Where is Jesus now that we need him? Has he forgotten us? When is he going to return?”

These questions we modern believers might ask when the foundations of our world are shaken by death, divorce, catastrophic illness, a child on drugs, extended unemployment etc. Hearing today’s gospel would have strengthened the faithful undergoing hard times. As difficult as their days might have been the parable would have assured them that Jesus was going to return, and would put an end to their suffering. The admonition  “Be watchful!  Be alert!” would influence them each day. “Perhaps this is the day Jesus is returning.” That expectation and hope would strengthen them “in the meanwhile. “What about us, all these years later? In the developed world we may not be going through what the early Christian community did in Mark’s time.  But some communities in the world and individuals among us, certainly are. So many Christians and people of goodwill are experiencing uprooting with the consequent confusion and pain.

We pray with the many distressed of the world today. We cling to Advent hope and trust that God holds all people in loving hands. Nothing is outside God’s concern and God can come at any moment to help us. We have a lot that distracts us in daily life and can numb us to the pain of others. Following Jesus’ mandate to “Be watchful! Be alert!” helps us stay in touch with our faith in God’s love and alert to God’s intervention in our daily lives.

Staying alert helps us grow spiritually. We grow in sensitivity to the pain of others when we begin to notice what grieves them. Our staying awake and attentive to the world around us can alert us to the already-arrived and still-coming of Christ.

This season has us keep watchful for Christ’s future return. Still, Advent is very much a season of the present moment because God is already in our midst and continues to stay with us. When Advent has ended we will celebrate Christ’s taking flesh among us. In the meanwhile this Eucharist helps us prepare for Christ and, with the Word, can open our eyes and ears to his presence already among us.

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

You must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

Have you ever found yourself suddenly unprepared for something? How did it feel? How did it work out? What did you learn? Have you had an experience which made you stop and reflect on the priorities you have in your life? Have you spent more time shaping your resume than shaping your soul? How many of us, like the rich farmer in the gospel, live in denial and live as if our lives were forever on this earth? Without getting lugubrious, how can we be sure that we are prepared to meet Jesus? The world is crazy and depressing, as it was in the time of the early Church. What gives me hope? How do I share that hope with others? How can we “stay awake” in the present? How can we avoid “sleepwalking” through life? What is the role of prayer in helping us notice what is really important and frequently overlooked or ignored? Christ has already come! how does that fact make Advent confusing for Christians?

Adapted from Walter Burghardt, S.J.: Advent is a time to remember, repent, and rehearse. Remember: Do we remember God’s pivotal care for a people who walked in darkness? How is the world of today like the world Jesus entered 2020 years ago? How is it different? Repent: Which actually means “change your mind --change your behavior—to rethink”. What do we in our current American society need to re-think and what changes must we make? Rehearse: What are we as individuals and as a society going to look like when Jesus comes for us (singularly or as a group)? What preparations do we need to make and what behaviors must we mirror in order to be ready? How are you working now to make the world look like a place Jesus would want to be when He comes again?

From Father Paul Gallagher OFM: All of creation seems to suggest that change and cycles of nature are at work all around us. Where are you most aware of those changes taking place? How do you feel about the changes that you are experiencing at this point in your life and in creation? The historical, political and social events of the world were affecting how Matthew's community understood their relationship to God. What are some of the events in your life, in the community, and the world that are affecting your understanding of your relationship to God and or the Church? This gospel will be proclaimed all around the world next Sunday. How do you think people in different parts of the world will hear and react to this text? Can you think of places where they may hear this text very differently than you are hearing it? How do you hear this gospel text? What do you think God is saying to you? How will you respond?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

I read Luke 12:13-21 (The Foolish Rich Man), and set the scene of the story. What is the rich man’s house like? Does he have a family? How do they live? I picture the rich man storing up his grain and goods, and imagine the effort and length of time it takes. What does he say to himself when his tasks are completed? I imagine how he feels when he learns he is going to die that night.

To what people or things am I attached? What have I done to hang on to those things? How would I feel if they were taken from me by fire, earthquake, or death? What does this tell me about attachments? Both the Dalai Lama and Tony DeMello, S.J. say that our attachments bring no happiness; in fact, they are a source of unhappiness. Do I agree? Why or why not?

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

“the way I live should be the way I look when Christ comes for me” —Walter Burghardt How Christ-like am I in where I am right now and in what I do; with people whose lives I touch? How do I handle money, power, fame? Who do I need to forgive? From whom do I need forgiveness? How do I relate to Christ who is found in the 25% of US children who live in poverty? How do I relate to Christ who is found in those seeking refuge and asylum in my wealthy country? How do I relate to Christ who is found in the 50% of all elderly who love on $377 a week or less, and that includes medical expenses?

Do I really believe Christ has come?

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

From Barbara Molinari Quinby, MPS, Director, Office of Human Life, Dignity, and Justice Ministries, Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral Raleigh, NC

“You know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep.” —Romans 13:11

Advent brings with it the spirit of watchfulness, a time of observing God’s in-breaking salvation. Do you see God acting in quiet ways in the world? Are you preparing a place for God in your life in a more visible and tangible way? Are you ready to wake up and join in? If you listen to the nightly news, the world seems hopeless. Yet, we are called to be a people of hope and Advent is a time of preparation. We prepare because we have hope in God’s love and grace.

At our Door Ministry, we strive to give the people who come to us a sense of hope. One parishioner said to me that our pledge of $100 doesn’t seem like much to help a person behind on today’s rents that are climbing. I always think to myself, God hasn’t abandoned this person, why should our parish? We are a parish that offers hope. I have deep gratitude for all of you that contribute to the Door Fund/Ministry. You make a difference in many lives. It is like that with all of our justice ministries here at Cathedral. If you aren’t participating in an outreach ministry, maybe this Advent would be a good time to explore where you could use your God-given talents and give the gift of yourself. As you light the first Advent candle, reflect on your need to wake up to God’s hopes for you; to be God’s hope to others.

Poetic Reflection:

While we all know that the world will end for us at some time or another, we often live as though this were not the case, until we can no longer do so. This cycle has been dubbed “denial, denial, denial, despair.” How does Wendell Berry capture our wish to deny our own demise?

Voices Late at Night

Until I have appeased the itch To be a millionaire, spare us, O Lord, and spare; Don't end the world until it has made me rich. it ends in poverty O Lord, until I come to fame, I pray thee keep the peace; Allay all strife, let rancor cease Until my book may earn its due acclaim. it ends in strife, unknown. Since I have promised wealth to all Bless our economy; Preserve our incivility and greed until votes are cast this fall. Unknown, it ends in ruin. Favor the world, Lord, with Thy love; Spare us for what we're not. I fear They wrath, and Hell is hot; Don't blow Thy trumpet until I improve. Words blaze; the trumpet sounds. O Lord, despite our right and wrong, let Thy daylight come down Again on woods and field and town, to be our daily bread and daily song. It lives in bread and song.

—from Entries

Closing Prayer

From Sacred Space, 2017: Dear Jesus, I can open my heart to you. I can tell you everything that troubles me I know you care about all the concerns in my life. Teach me to live in the knowledge that you who care for me today will care for me tomorrow and all the days of my life.

Solemnity of Christ the King, November 20, 2022

The power of Jesus

Luke 23: 35–43

The people stood by and watched; the rulers, meanwhile, sneered at him and said, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Messiah of God.”

Even the soldiers jeered at him. As they approached to offer him wine they called out, “If you are King of the Jews, save yourself.”

Above him there was an inscription that read, “This is the King of the Jews.”

Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us.”

The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation? And indeed, we have been condemned justly, for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Music Meditations

• Pleni Sunt Coeli—Phoenix Chorale
• Jesus, Remember Me—Taizé
• How Great Thou Art
• Come Thou Font of Every Blessing—BYU Choir or CBU Choir (together with Holy, Holy, Holy)
• Behold Our God—CBU Music

Opening Prayer

Lord, we lean on your example to show us what real power means. You are king of all that is good, compassionate and just. You died on the cross the way you did to show us how to trust in the Father’s goodness, even in the darkest moments of our lives. You showed us that love is more powerful that hate, that mercy is more powerful than vengeance. You showed us that dignity is not a matter of where and how we suffer, but a matter of the grace and openness to the suffering other others. Help us to understand what real power means.

Companions for the Journey

From a homily preached to CC@S in 2010:

JESUS, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM

Two processions entered Jerusalem on a spring day in the year 30. It was the beginning of the week of Passover, the most sacred week of the Jewish year. On the West side of the city, the main entrance, so to speak, entered Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Idumea, Judea and Samaria. Imagine a cavalry on horses, foot soldiers, leather armor, helmets, weapons, banners, golden eagles mounted on poles, sun glinting on metal and gold. Imagine the sounds: the marching of feet, the creaking of leather, the clinking of bridles, the beating of drums. Then think of the swirling of dust from the entourage. The eyes of the silent onlookers, some curious, some awed, some resentful.

—Borg, Marcus and Crossan, Dominic: What the Gospels Really Teach About the Last Days

Though unfamiliar to most people today, the imperial procession was well known in the Jewish homeland in the first century. It was the standard practice of the Roman governors of Judea to be in Jerusalem for the major Jewish festivals, not out of respect, but simply to be in the city in case there was trouble from the increased population.

On the other side of town, the east side, there was another processional. There was a modestly clothed man named Jesus riding on a donkey coming down from the Mount of Olives. Jesus was from the peasant village of Nazareth. His followers were also peasants as were most of the people in the country and surrounding the city. It included people who were outcasts and lame, women and Samaritans. He was the son of a laborer, perhaps a carpenter. His message was about another kind of kingdom, the kingdom of God. They stood by him and alongside the entrance. Many people simply spread their cloaks and shawls before him on his path while others quickly plucked branches from some trees to lay before him and still others waved palms. What kind of king is this, what kind of kingdom?

First of all, the Kingdom of God is not a place, or a political structure, but a realm in which only God is adored, a realm in which peace, justice and love are the reigning principles, a realm in which power is shared, not the possession of a few. Were the onlookers that day really looking for a king whose reign would be radically different? Are we?

Since the 13th Sunday, when Luke told us that Jesus “firmly resolved to proceed to Jerusalem”, we have been traveling with Jesus to the Holy City. Along the way, he feeds the hungry, heals the hurting, loves and serves the poor, the broken, the marginalized. And when he enters Jerusalem –a dusty little man on a dusty little borrowed donkey, the fun begins. Beaten, mocked, scourged and hung on a crossbeam like a common criminal, he is not the king anybody was expecting.

It’s a lonely throne and powerless crown for this “King of the Jews.” Ironically, it is one of the criminals executed alongside Jesus who has the faith to ask Jesus to remember him when Jesus enters his kingly power.

Jesus, the king, is showing us another kind of power from the cross. Jesus’ power is not exerted by force, but by inviting us to become one with him. He is offering himself to us in a relationship that is strong, even when it appears weak. In that relationship we share in his power—a power to heal and forgive; a power to be his servants in his ministry of reconciliation. In our relationship with Jesus we become strong, not assuming power and rule over people, but by sharing his life in our relationship with others.

Pilate entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday with soldiers and a chariot and led by force. Jesus entered on a donkey and led by service. One was the executioner and one was executed. One is forgotten in history. One is worshiped and loved and changed the world.

For whatever people want to say about Jesus, the historical reality about Jesus is that he represented not only a new way of believing, but a new way of being. He deliberately countered the aristocratic and pharisaic domination system. Jesus spoke and lived for the oppressed and became the greatest leader by being the greatest servant.

And now it is our turn. When we pray May your kingdom come, we sometimes hope God will change the world around us without our having to change at all. But when we pray may your kingdom come we have to be willing to let our kingdom go. Oh, we can point to historical institutions like governments and even the Church who have abused power and coveted the trappings of monarchy. But that is a cop out. Real change has always begun with individuals. Think Jesus, yes, but think also of Ghandi, of Buddha, of Mother Teresa and many others who changed their priorities and changed the world forever. It starts in our daily choices: Do we seek power and prestige? Is our goal in life to be “somebody” to be important or successful or relevant? Do we seek wealth and control? Or do we seek to put our gifts to work for the good of those who cannot help themselves? Do we seek to work to save a ravaged planet? Do we seek to dominate, intimidate or exclude those closest to us—our family members, friends and co-workers? Do we Judge and disdain others or are we seekers of care and compassion? May your kingdom come. Talk is cheap. Are we truly seekers of God’s kingdom of love and peace or are we mouthing empty phrases?

Two processions entered Jerusalem on that long ago day. The same question, the same alternative, faces those of us who would be faithful to Jesus today. Which procession are we in?

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

• Christ freely gives forgiveness to those who ask: What holds you back from asking?
  Is there someone from whom you are holding back forgiveness?
• Has Jesus been a shepherd for you in times of turmoil and trouble?
  How can Jesus be a shepherd for a troubled world and deeply disturbed world?
• Like a revisiting of the earlier temptations in the desert at the beginning of his career, Jesus once again hears the seductive hiss of a final temptation—to use his power to free himself from the cross. Have you ever had a particular temptation that would not seem to go away? What was it?
• Have I ever been tempted to use what power I possess for my own personal purposes or needs?
• The grace for Jesus was the thief’s voice on the other side of his cross, reminding him of his mission and his promise to his father to stay faithful to that mission… Has anyone in your life been that steadying voice that recalls you to fidelity to your obligations and promises? How successful have those voices of grace been in returning you to an even keel?
• Powerlessness is horrible—there are things in life we cannot control, and we just HATE that. Has there been anything in your life that has mirrored this powerlessness?
• What is the difference between coercive power and suasive power?
  What is God’s power like?
• Anne Lamott said there are three ways in which we wish we had power, and they are impossible to obtain: the power to change the truth, the power to change the past, and power to change another. Do you agree?
  What DO we have the power to change?
• We find Christ today dying on the cross. What kind of power is that?
  How will he attract people from such a powerless place?
  Luke tells us that, “the people stood there watching….” What is your reaction?
• Do I ever surrender power to those who don’t deserve it?
• The king isn’t ruling from a throne, but from a cross, a place of defeat and abandonment. Do I want to accept his rule in my life?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

Read Psalm 147 and consider the questions which follow:

Psalm 147

Praise the Lord. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him! The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills. He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call. His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of the warrior; the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. Extol the Lord, Jerusalem; praise your God, Zion. He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you. He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat. He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast? He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow. He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel. He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws.

A psalm reflects the psalmist’s theology and the psalmist’s idea of how they want the world to work. Sometimes, psalms about God’s power reflect all too closely the ideal of power prevalent at the time—powerful rulers who reward those who curry favor with them, who punish those who disobey the rules. Order is maintained through intimidation and sheer force. It is coercive power. In reading the psalm, how would you describe the psalm writer’s notion of God’s power? Does this comport with your idea of God’s power? Do you think power must include destruction or create fear among others? What about suasive power—the kind of power that draws in others and empowers them, encourages them, and, yes, reminds them when they are messing up? What kind of power did Jesus eschew while he was on the cross? What kind of power did Jesus embrace while he was on the cross? What does the tell you about the proper use of kingly power? Of God’s power?

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

Adapted from Justice Notes: “First Impressions”, a service of the Southern Dominican Province

We are a people who admire power. We are quick to react if we think we are being infringed upon in any way. Our country began with a rebellion against a British king’s power. We wanted our national and individual liberties and would accept no king or queen over us. We boast of being the most powerful nation in the world and we have the economic, military and political might to prove it. This feast challenges us to reflect on the power each of us has and how we use it. Are we first world citizens who are economically comfortable, educated, articulate, etc.? There are many ways we have and use power; many ways we have influence over individuals and as members of communities and organizations. Where do you see abuse of power or a power vacuum? The Gospel is not only about our own individual goodness or charity. It is about our responsibility to help change social structures and national policies to make them more compassionate. We must ask the Gospel questions and struggle to change the answers:

• Does our nation feed the hungry? Or do we cut support programs in order to fund an ever increasing military budget?
• Does our nation welcome strangers? Or are our immigration limits and laws making it more and more difficult for those seeking a better life to find one here in our country?
• Does our nation clothe the naked? Or do we support the sweatshops, which make the lives of the poor a misery while making cheap clothing more available for those who already have an abundance?
• Does our nation care for the sick? Or are health care plans and medical care available only to those who can afford it?
• Does our nation visit Christ in prison? Or as the nation with the highest percentage of its population behind bars do we ask why these brothers and sisters of Jesus come mostly from minority groups and extreme poverty?

What can I do?
Read the Gospel from the perspective of the poor.
Be Informed. Get involved in advocating for “The Kingdom of God”.

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

I read Kings 12:1-9. I imagine that I am the young Rehoboam who has just inherited the throne from my father Solomon, a very powerful man. When I am asked to lighten the yoke of slavery and taxation that my father put on the people, why do I respond the way that I do? Insecurity? Fear of my brother Jereboam’s power? The heady feeling of being in control so much? Sheer bad temper? Why do I listen to my contemporaries instead of the elders? Where does my show of power lead me? In what ways am I tempted by my own desire for power and control? Have there ever been times in my life when I have taken advantage of those less powerful, less intelligent, less ambitious or less loveable? I speak to God about these instances. What personal changes would I like God’s help with?

Poetic Reflection:

How does the poem by the late Stanford Professor and poet Denise Levertov reflect on the way we humans have misinterpreted the words in Genesis and believed that the earth was ours to plunder and abuse, as opposed to being a gift we were to preserve and return to God in better condition than we found it?

“Tragic Error”

The earth is the Lord’s, we gabbed, and the fullness thereof– while we looted and pillaged, claiming indemnity: the fullness thereof given over to us, to our use– while we preened ourselves, sure of our power, willful or ignorant, through the centuries. Miswritten, misread, that charge: subdue was the false, the misplaced word in the story. Surely we were to have been earth’s mind, mirror, reflective source. Surely our task was to have been to love the earth, to dress and keep it like Eden’s garden. That would have been our dominion: to be those cells of earth’s body that could perceive and imagine, could bring the planet into the haven it is to be known, (as the eye blesses the hand, perceiving it form and the work it can do).”

—Denise Levertov, from The Evening Train

Poetic Reflection:

This poem, written by Thomas a Kempis in the fifteenth century, shows us the difference between our notions of power and the power God favors:

Oh, love, how deep, how broad, how high, Beyond all thought and fantasy, That God, the Son of God, should take Our mortal form for mortal's sake! He sent no angel to our race, Of higher or of lower place, But wore the robe of human frame, And to this world himself he came. For us baptized, for us he bore His holy fast and hungered sore; For us temptation sharp he knew; For us the tempter overthrew. For us he prayed; for us he taught, For us his daily works he wrought, By words and signs and actions thus Still seeking not himself, but us. For us by wickedness betrayed, For us, in crown of thorns arrayed, He bore the shameful cross and death; For us he gave his dying breath. For us he rose from death again; For us he went on high to reign; For us he sent his Spirit here To guide, to strengthen, and to cheer. All glory to our Lord and God For love so deep, so high, so broad; The Trinity whom we adore Forever and forevermore.

Closing Prayer

Lord, we are selfish, unkind and mean-spirited at times. We have failed so often and often failed spectacularly. But you understand and forgive, extending to us the Father’s care. Aways the father’s care.

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, November 13, 2022

Perseverance in the face of the unknown

Luke 21: 5–19

When some were talking about the Temple, remarking how it was adorned with fine stonework and votive offerings, he said, ‘All these things you are staring at now—the time will come when not a single stone will be left on another; everything will be destroyed.’

And they put to him this question, ‘Master,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, then, and what sign will there be that it is about to take place?’

But he said, ‘Take care not to be deceived, because many will come using my name and saying, “I am the one” and “The time is near at hand.” Refuse to join them. And when you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be terrified, for this is something that must happen first, but the end will not come at once.’

Then he said to them, ‘Nation will fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes and plagues and famines in various places; there will be terrifying events and great signs from heaven.

‘But before all this happens, you will be seized and persecuted; you will be handed over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and brought before kings and governors for the sake of my name—and that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Make up your minds not to prepare your defense, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated universally on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your perseverance will win you your lives.’

Music Meditations

• Goodness Is Stronger than Evil—Desmond Tutu and John Bell
• Jesus Remember Me—Taizé
• 10,0000 Reasons—Matt Redman
• Shepherd Me, O God—Marty Haugen (Psalms for the Church Year)

Opening Prayer

Lord, help me to get my priorities straight. Help me to see the transitory nature of so many of my goals and desires, my frustrations and resentments. I waste so my of my time and emotions building temples to success and achievement that will soon be torn down in in my life to come. Teach me to focus on your enduring message and let go of things that do not really matter.

Companions for the Journey

By Daniel J. Harrington, S.J., Professor of New Testament Studies at Weston, Mass:

From time to time someone predicts that the world is going to end on such-and-such a date. These predictions are typically greeted with a mixture of fear, ridicule and bemusement. In New Testament times many people seemed to have been concerned, if not with the end of the world, then at least with the dramatic arrival of God’s kingdom and the totally new situation that might accompany it.

Today’s Old Testament readings can help us get a sense of these expectations. Psalm 98, originally composed for the liturgical celebration of the kingship of God at the Temple in Jerusalem, came to be understood as prophesying the dramatic future intervention of God in human history and the establishing of a kingdom of justice for all. Likewise, in Malachi 3 the early biblical motif of “the day of the Lord” is pictured in dramatic imagery (“blazing like an oven”) and as bringing about the future destruction of evildoers and the proud. Even more detailed and graphic scenarios of the coming reign of God can be found in Jewish apocalyptic writings and in the Synoptic Gospels.

Today’s selection from Jesus’ apocalyptic discourse in Luke 21 presupposes such beliefs and images. In this situation Jesus responds as the prophet of God, a theme developed throughout this Gospel. As God’s prophet, Jesus warns against false prophets who pretend to know the details of God’s plan, gives hints of the events or signs that will accompany the coming of God’s kingdom in its fullness and warns about coming persecutions and even divisions within families.. This selection from Luke 21 ends with a sentence that is unique to Luke’s version of the apocalyptic discourse, “By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” The word translated as “perseverance” is sometimes rendered as “patience” or “endurance.” These are not popular virtues in 21st-century America. We want fast food, fast cars and fast computers. We have short attention spans; and we communicate in sound bites, e-mails and instant messages. The kind of perseverance recommended in today’s Gospel text, however, is not apathy or laziness or timidity. In the biblical concept of perseverance there is an element of active resistance in the face of opposition. It is inspired by confidence and hope in God. Hope and perseverance are two sides of the same coin. Hope without perseverance is anxiety and ends in madness. Perseverance without hope leads to resignation, fatalism and indifference.

As Christians we hope for the full coming of God’s kingdom, the resurrection of the dead, the last judgment and just rewards and punishments. We expect that these events all will come about in God’s own time and way. In the mean time we try to conduct our lives as people of faith, hope and love, fully aware of the fragility of human existence and of the world around us. In the midst of fast-paced change, we need the biblical kind of patience and perseverance to live one day at a time, seizing the moment and living it to its fullness, all the while moving forward in hope to eternal life in God’s kingdom.

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

By your perseverance you will secure your lives

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

From Rev Paul Gallagher, OFM: How important to Jesus was the Temple in Jerusalem? What are some current symbols of God’s abiding presence in your life? What, in my mind, is God’s “temple”? If I am God’s temple, do any of these predictions apply to me, and what are the implications of such an idea? What are some contemporary “temples”? Do some institutions and systems of modern western culture represent evil temples to others of different cultures? What might some of them be? (the Twin Towers for example) Do we fear that some of them might be brought down? What does it mean to us when we hear that the world as we humans know it is not the last stage of Salvation History? Why does the world have to end? Does it matter for us to know the timing of the end of the world? How do you react when you hear predictions about the end of the world as we know it? How can we be “ready”? What does Jesus say about taking literally such signs of the end of the world? Why do we continue to do so? What privileges, possession or way of life might I lose in an upending of the world’s values? How does a contemplation of end times comfort or frighten you? When my world is falling apart, and the usual supports are not there for me, what do I do? How can I thank those who have been a "sun of justice" and brought "healing rays" in my dark moments? What is the role of faith (trust) in the contemplation of end times? What does it mean to live faithful lives while we await a reign of justice? Where do we meet Christ in our lives? How can we go through all sorts of problems as disciples of Jesus and not have a “hair of our head” harmed? Define perseverance. How does the current world situation—the war in Ukraine, rising prices and food shortages for the poorest on the planet, illness—demand perseverance Describe a time in your life when you had to persevere in the face of difficulties. In what areas do you need to grow in perseverance and patience? From Rev Paul Gallagher, OFM: Are there experiences in your life that have had dramatic effects on how you understand your life, your relationship to others, or God? Did you take your feelings at that time to God in your prayer? In the poem “Hollow Men”, T. S. Eliot’s final lines are: This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends Not with a bang but a whimper. What do you think Eliot meant? Jesus, who himself continued to pray and have hope in God, even as his world collapsed, has made a promise to us. He would not leave us on our own, but would send us his Spirit. We received that Spirit at our baptism. The Spirit is a persevering and praying Spirit within us. It enables us to be faithful no matter what world ends for us. The Spirit keeps us hope-filled when all we see in front of us is darkness and struggle. Is it hard to remember this? Why? What is the role of prayer for you as you face the challenges of life?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

Read Psalm 98 in its entirety. Then change the words around so that you address God personally. (I will sing a new song to you, Lord. You have done marvelous deeds) After each sentence reflect on what God has done for the world in general, and for you in particular. Write your own ending—just want do you want to happen when God once more governs the earth? What will be your role? What can you do to make the reign of God more possible here and now?

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/ Action:

(Adapted from Walter Burghardt S.J., in Lovely in Eyes Not His)

Christ has come and he will come again. But don’t live your life in a crib that has passed or on a cloud that is yet to arrive. Christ our Lord is here now. Not only in the word you have heard and in the bread that is broken. He comes to you in every human person that crosses your path, haunts your eye, beats your ear. He warms himself in the winter on the grates of Market Street, begs for shelter at the homeless missions, cries for your compassion behind bars. In slum and condo, he grows old and unwept. He bleeds not only in Aleppo, but in every brutal rape, in every sneer or shoulder shrugged, in every student lonely amid campus laughter. He lies alone and afraid on every hospital bed. Dies again in each mother bereaved. And dear God, the children. From the skin-and-bones of the displaced children seeking asylum in our country and in Europe, through the thousands of battered bodies and shriveled souls that show up each year at places like Covenant House and Homeboy industries, to the uncounted victims of opioids and other drugs who “crash” on our streets.

The end that Jesus foretold—we cannot hasten it and we cannot delay it. It will come in God’s own time. Today’s gospel is not a betting pool—put a buck in and guess when Christ is coming again. Instead, this gospel commits you to act as if Christ were already here—because he is. And you clearly find him here in our Eucharistic liturgies. But do you find him out there? Where do you personally find Christ? At Catholic Worker House or in your dorm room? At hospitals or detention centers? In prison on or vacation? Just open your eyes and you will find Jesus there. And if you have already discovered Christ out there—what must you do? Only you know the answer to that question.

Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Consideration:

Read the following from Luke 12:16-21. For this farmer, it did not matter when the world was going to end; his world was ending way before he expected it. Has there ever been a time in your life when you behaved/ made choices as if you were going to live forever? What can you do to remind yourself that your life is God’s?

And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Poetic Reflection:

Read the following poem by Robert Frost:

“Fire and Ice”

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice

Walter Burghardt, S.J., in Lovely in Eyes Not His, said that there are two things that will destroy our world from within: Lust (desire for power, possessions and need to determine what others do) and hatred (familial, cultural, racial, religious). Can you think of examples of both of these playing out in our lives today? In your mind which is currently the most dangerous?

Poetic Reflection:

“Ash Wednesday” is a long poem written by T. S. Eliot after his 1927 conversion to Anglicanism. It is a poem about the difficulty of religious belief, and concerned with personal salvation in an age of uncertainty. In “Ash Wednesday” Eliot's poetic persona, one who has lacked faith in the past, has somehow found the courage, through spiritual exhaustion, to seek faith. One of the points of the poem is that whether the entire world ends or not, our pesronal world will come to an end, and what we have concerned ourselves with in the past will no longer matter.

“Ash Wednesday”

Part I

Because I do not hope to turn again Because I do not hope Because I do not hope to turn Desiring this man’s gift and that man’s scope I no longer strive to strive towards such things (Why should the agèd eagle stretch its wings?) Why should I mourn The vanished power of the usual reign? Because I do not hope to know The infirm glory of the positive hour Because I do not think Because I know I shall not know The one veritable transitory power Because I cannot drink There, where trees flower, and springs flow, for there is nothing again Because I know that time is always time And place is always and only place And what is actual is actual only for one time And only for one place I rejoice that things are as they are and I renounce the blessèd face And renounce the voice Because I cannot hope to turn again Consequently I rejoice, having to construct something Upon which to rejoice And pray to God to have mercy upon us And pray that I may forget These matters that with myself I too much discuss Too much explain Because I do not hope to turn again Let these words answer For what is done, not to be done again May the judgement not be too heavy upon us Because these wings are no longer wings to fly But merely vans to beat the air The air which is now thoroughly small and dry Smaller and dryer than the will Teach us to care and not to care Teach us to sit still. Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.

Further reading:

Ash Wednesday—T.S. Eliot Hollow Men—T.S. Eliot

Closing Prayer

Blessèd sister, holy mother, spirit of the fountain, spirit of the garden, Suffer us not to mock ourselves with falsehood Teach us to care and not to care Teach us to sit still Even among these rocks, Our peace in His will And even among these rocks Sister, mother And spirit of the river, spirit of the sea, Suffer me not to be separated And let my cry come unto Thee.