Deacon Tom Anthony

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 159

Reading 1 Mal 3:19-20a

Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven,
when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble,
and the day that is coming will set them on fire,
leaving them neither root nor branch,
says the LORD of hosts.
But for you who fear my name, there will arise
the sun of justice with its healing rays.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:5-6, 7-8, 9

R. (cf. 9) The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.
Sing praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
sing joyfully before the King, the LORD.
R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.
Let the sea and what fills it resound,
the world and those who dwell in it;
let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy.
R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.
Before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to rule the earth,
He will rule the world with justice
and the peoples with equity.
R. The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.

Reading 2 2 Thes 3:7-12

Brothers and sisters:
You know how one must imitate us.
For we did not act in a disorderly way among you,
nor did we eat food received free from anyone.
On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day
we worked, so as not to burden any of you.
Not that we do not have the right.
Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you,
so that you might imitate us.
In fact, when we were with you,
we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work,
neither should that one eat.
We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a
disorderly way,
by not keeping busy but minding the business of others.
Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly
and to eat their own food.

Alleluia Lk 21:28

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 21:5-19

While some people were speaking about
how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings,
Jesus said, “All that you see here--
the days will come when there will not be left
a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”

Then they asked him,
“Teacher, when will this happen?
And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?”
He answered,
“See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’
Do not follow them!
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end.”
Then he said to them,
“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

“Before all this happens, however,
they will seize and persecute you,
they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons,
and they will have you led before kings and governors
because of my name.
It will lead to your giving testimony.
Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,
for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking
that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.
You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends,
and they will put some of you to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.
By your perseverance you will secure your lives.”

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 To fear God is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. It is very easy to preoccupy ourselves with The Final Judgment and the calamities that it will bring but, through the prophets and finally Jesus, we are reminded that as long as we keep our focus on God we will be protected from these events. They should not be in the forefront of our thoughts but more as in the back of our minds to make the adjustments necessary in our lives to keep faithful to God. As long as we are faithful, He will be faithful to us. This includes being protected and raised above the trials and tribulations of this world.

No one knows when Jesus will come again in all His glory. No one knows when this final judgment will take place. Our thoughts and perceptions can never compare to those of the Trinity. We should not even attempt to fathom what is going happen or even when. Jesus just wants us to have complete trust and faith in Him. We cannot rely on other people or institutions to provide the answers to what God chose to remain hidden. This was the message that Jesus brought when He pointed at The Temple and prophesied that there will be a day when no stone would be standing: All the structures and accomplishments of man, including those that are done for the Glory of God, are fleeting and will eventually fade away. If we are to put our reliance on these structures and institutions before God, what is that to say about us and our faith? Only God is eternal in comparison and we are invited into an eternal relationship with Him if only we accept and love Him as He loves us.

We are presented with a choice here. As Christians, it has been revealed to us what our true destiny is to be. As long as we welcome Jesus into our lives and love God, we will be invited into a beautiful, loving relationship with Him. Our birthright as Children of God will be recognized. Our spirituality will be increased and a new way of living will be revealed. Our existence will take on a new nature and we will be transformed. All of our thoughts, actions, and our state of being will be united with Jesus Christ. We will process forward to the Father guided by the Holy Spirit. The revelations through the Trinity will be wondrous and glorious. The only thing we have to do is accept Jesus Christ as our savior and let Him do His work.

It is surprising how we tend to focus on some the dark words that Jesus spoke yet ignore the comforting ones that immediately followed. He does indeed warn of wars, earthquakes, and the destruction of kingdoms. He also warns of the persecution of Christians. But He then consoles us with the fact that not a hair on our head will be destroyed and our perseverance will save our lives. Whatever challenges that we face in our lives, as long as we stay united with Christ, can be overcome so easily. We need to trust completely in Jesus especially when things appear the most hopeless. Jesus Christ is truly the answer.

The way we permit our relationship with Jesus Christ to influence our lives is very important. I think we all can recall times when we have turned away from Jesus and pursued our own ambitions without thinking of Him. More often than not, these times have led to tragic consequences. At first, this turning away may only manifest itself in small decisions, but what usually happens is that the small things then tend to grow into larger things with more terrible results. Ultimately, we can then find ourselves so far away from Jesus and never really knew that we drifted away in the first place. We need to constantly correct ourselves in the little things that we do wrong before they change into bigger things. Paul mentions this in his letter to the Thessalonians. We can ask why was there so much of a concern that there we individuals “minding the business of others”?

The reason can plainly be seen. Paul himself was concerned that these “little transgressions” would ultimately lead to bigger things of more concern. The focus must always be on Christ.

The message from God permeates through Sacred Scripture. There are consequences to what we do. When we maintain our relationship with Jesus Christ, He will actually endure these consequences with us and help us through them until our suffering is complete. He will then be there to celebrate what lies beyond that suffering with us.

Deacon Tom Anthony