Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Mk. 13: 31). As the liturgical year comes to an end, the readings direct our attention towards the end times. Confronted with the fact that the world as we know it is passing away, we can take comfort in the knowledge that God’s Word to us is not. In today’s gospel passage, the Lord Jesus is speaking a word of encouragement and consolation to his disciples fully aware of the challenges that lay before them. At no time does Christ promise to remove the struggles we must face, but, he does promise to be with us all the days of our lives. It would be good to recall Saint Paul’s words to the church of Rome. “If God is with us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31) God uses all the trials that we have to bear as means of conforming us to the image of his Son. I find great consolation in the knowledge that no matter what we have to endure, God can use it for our good (CF. Rom. 8:28).

“But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever” (Dan. 12:3). God, the Creator of the Universe, uses our hands and feet to further his creative plans. He reveals his kingdom of God through our actions. The Kingdom is not dependent on fancily crafted speeches. Rather, it depends on honest and intimate relationships. Remember Jesus’s words. “Everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love and unselfish concern for one another” (Jn. 13:35). Love is not a noun. Love is a verb, an action. Talk is cheap. “Don’t tell me; show me” (Marion Berkoe). We love because we are loved. Even if our acts of love are rejected, we continue to love because love is stronger than death (CF. Song 8:6). Love will demand all you have to give because it is signed and sealed with the blood of Christ. 

The world is flawed and broken but denies it. People want to be healed but refuse to look in the mirror of truth to find the nature of their malady. As Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn. 8:32). Only those who gaze upon the glory of God shining on the face of Christ (CF. 2 Cor.4:6) can acknowledge their weakness and find peace and lasting joy. Those who have come to know this joy and peace are empowered to share it with others. Recall the words of Peter to the lame man at the temple gate. “What I have, I give you” (Acts 3:6). One who has come to know the love of God can speak the truth in love. Having come to know oneself as a beloved child of God is free to recognize every person as a gift from God and treat them with love and respect. G.K. Chesterton quipped, “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly” (Orthodoxy).

We are called to proclaim the truth that sets all people free. Remember, God sent his Son into the world to save it, not condemn it (CF. Jn. 3:17). In a fragmented world, we are called to shine brightly as agents of healing and reconciliation. Because we fail at the task so often, I offer Gandhi’s comment as a reminder. “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ” (Mahatma Gandhi). Compassion is the healing ointment our world needs. Jesus gave us an example that we should love one another and bear each other’s burdens with love and compassion. As disciples of Christ, we are called to seek out and find the lost. We are not to be agents of retribution but of reconciliation.

Saint John tells us why we can act this way in the face of overwhelming trials and conflicts. “You, dear children, belong to God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4). We are disciples of Christ who shines brightly as the heavens. He was raised up in glory because he laid down his life for the salvation of the world. He was given a name above all other names because he became a curse to redeem those who were cursed. Those who live the truth in love will be lights of hope, leading people to freedom and life. Once we have removed the burdens of those who are exhausted and overworked, they will raise their voices in joyful song and dance with abandon before the throne of God.

In the end souls will stand naked before the judge. It no longer matters what they once were in history, but only what they are in truth” (Spe Salvi, #44, Pope Benedict XVI). God who is faithful and true to his word will show us the path to life and bring us to the fullness of joy in his presence. There we shall shine like the splendor of the firmament, and be like the stars shining out in the heavens. Today we have gathered around the Table of the Lord to thank him for admitting us into the kingdom of Light that darkness cannot overcome. The reason for our joy is that we can serve the King of Life who came that we might have abundant life. We have been invited to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb, let us eat until we are filled and drink until we are refreshed. Then we will shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament and light up this dark world with the twinkling of our stars.