Dan 12:1-3; Heb 10:11-14, 18; Mk 13:24-32
Today’s liturgy is anticipating the culmination of the Liturgical Year, which will happen next Sunday. The readings invite us to reflect deeply on the end of time, which is going to be the Second Coming of the Lord and the great Day of Judgment.
The Jews of olden times believed that the coming of the kingdom of God would be a cataclysmic event. The Book of Daniel says that “there is going to be a time of great distress, unparalleled since nations first came into existence” (12:1). In Mark’s gospel, Jesus describes a common understanding: “In those days, after that time of distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will lose its brightness, the stars will come falling from heaven and the powers in the heavens will be shaken” (13:24-25). Today, these words would cause a lot of anxiety to people and would invite horrifying predictions from doomsayers. Such feelings and attitudes, however, should not be ours as faithful believers.
The Second Coming of Christ is part of our prayer in every Eucharistic celebration. When we say the Creed we proclaim that Christ “will come again to judge the living and the dead.” In the Eucharistic Prayer we also declare that Christ has died, has risen, and will come again. Importantly, after the Lord’s Prayer, we ask God to “deliver us from every evil” and to “protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.” Instead of being fearful, we, Christians must look forward to the Second Coming of our Lord because it is going to be the day of our deliverance, when pain, suffering and death would no longer be ours.
God keeps the appointed time of Judgment secret: “Nobody knows it, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son; no one but the Father” (Mk 13:32). It is not God’s intention to be sadistic by keeping us ignorant of the appointed time of his Son’s return. On the contrary, it is God’s way of encouraging us to remain faithful to his commandments in the light of the Day of Reckoning. Ordinarily, we would like to dilly-dally ourselves when the deadline of our work is still far. We tend to relax and live irresponsibly thinking that we have plenty of time to fulfill our tasks. More often than not, we end up in life with so many unfinished businesses. The unexpectedness of the Lord’s coming should, therefore, challenge us to live our life always with one eye fixed on heaven.
An old pastor was enjoying a big glass of beer when his parish vicar teased him by asking: “Father, what would you do if you are told by an angel of death that within a few hours you are going to die?”
The holy priest replied calmly: “Nothing, my son. I would only try to finish my beer.”
What about us? Are we ready to face the Lord at the Day of Judgment or at the moment of our death? Surely, if the angel of death would tell us that we only have little time left, we all will rush to the Church and pray, seek for forgiveness, reach out to our enemies and extend a reconciling hand. But why do we have to wait for the finish-line to do the good? An important lesson that we learned as little children is not to wait for tomorrow what we can do for today. So, let us love God and one another now, not later.
Saint John of the Cross once said: “In the twilight of life, God will not judge us on our earthly possessions and human successes, but on how well we have loved.” An unknown author suggested that at the Day of Judgment,
God won’t ask the square footage of your house. He will ask how many people you helped who didn’t have a house.
God won’t ask how many fancy clothes you had in your closet. He will ask how many of those clothes you gave away to those who didn’t have any.
God won’t ask what your highest salary was. He will ask if you trampled over any people to obtain that salary.
God won’t ask how many promotions you received. He will ask what you did to promote others.
God won’t ask how many friends you had. He will ask how many people you were a friend to.
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