Year II

34th Week in Ordinary Time, Tuesday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading John shares a vision of the Last Judgment. Christ the King comes on a cloud, reminiscent of the prophecy of the Book of Daniel regarding a son of man (see Daniel 7:13). He bears a sickle because the time of harvest is at hand; Our Lord preached about the need for a grain of wheat to fall into the ground and die in order to bear fruit, and now all those grains of wheat have grown to maturity and are ready to be harvested. This is the gathering of the chosen.

At the same time an angel harvests grapes with a sickle to press for making the wine of God’s fury. This wine is an image taken from the prophets (Isaiah 51:17; Jeremiah 25:15-16, 49:12, 51:7; Ezekiel 23:31-34), the reaping and pressing represent the doom of the ungodly: wines in a press are trampled underfoot.

Do you see the Bread of Life in your future or the wine of wrath? It’s up to you.

Readings: Revelation 14:14–19; Psalm 96:10–13; Luke 21:5–11. See also 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C and 34th Week in Ordinary Time, Tuesday.

 

34th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading, amidst the calamities and evils narrated in the book of Revelation, John has a consoling vision of the righteous surrounding Our Lord (the Lamb). Mount Zion refers to Jerusalem, the traditional place where the faithful remnant will gather under the Messiah’s reign. The righteous bear the name of the Father and the Lamb on their foreheads, in contrast with the pagans who bear the name or number of the Beast.

They follow the Lamb wherever he goes, which means they followed him all the way to Heaven, but by way of Calvary. They’re faithful disciples who have no deceit on their lips because they didn’t deny Christ or do homage to the Beast. Lying is characteristic of the opponents of Christ. They’re unblemished because they have made a perfect untainted sacrifice of themselves to God, singing a song of praise unique to them because it comes from a heart that loves Our Lord completely.

Any one of us could form part of this group, because everyone is called to holiness. All we have to do is offer Our Lord everything we have and are, fulfilling the duties of our state of life (married, consecrated, ordained, etc.) with love for him and for souls. It’s never too late on this earth to start.

Readings: Revelation 14:1–3, 4b–5; Psalm 24:1b–4b, 5–6; Luke 21:1–4. See also 34th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, 9th Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, and 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B.

33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, Year II

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Today’s First Reading is a part of John’s Revelation that is difficult to decipher, because John communicates many things in the same set of symbols. John is speaking in symbols to the Christians of his time regarding the persecution of Rome; the “beast” here refers to Nero as much as it refers to the antichrist. The two prophets, in a context of Roman persecution, could be Saints Peter and Paul, who were both martyred there during the persecution of Nero. The symbolism of the olive tree and lamp stands means that they are martyrs (in Zechariah 4:8-14, olive trees refer to the anointed witnesses Joshua and Zerubbabel), not to mention their fate at the hands of the people’s incredulity and the beast who didn’t accept their message. Yet the passage is full of symbolism taken from the most miraculous prophets (Elijah), Moses (pronouncing plagues upon “Egypt”), and Enoch (who was taken up into Heaven). Rome is branded as “Sodom” and “Egypt” for its immorality and oppression of God’s people. Some scholars believe it refers to the Church as a whole, and Saint Peter and Paul are co-patrons of Rome and could easily represent the whole Church.

The fire that comes from their mouths could also be seen as a purifying fire: if you’re impure, you’ll simply be burned away, but the purity in you will be refined. This could represent the fire of truth: the Gospel. Everyone appreciates a fiery preacher, and they epitomize that quality because they’re preaching the unadulterated truth of the Gospel with fire and conviction. The two prophets seem to share the fate of all prophets: they rub their incredulous listeners the wrong way, and, eventually, are killed to silence the message they’re bearing. However, in this case it takes the epitome of lies and evil, the beast, to bring them down. It brings something new: the greatest calamity that could befall them (evil and death) are powerless in the light of eternal life. They’re not only restored to life, but taken up into Heaven. Until this point of salvation history being taken up was something either shrouded in mystery (as in the case of Enoch) or only witnessed by a faithful few (for example, Elijah and Our Lord himself at his Ascension). Now the wicked as well as the righteous see it, an allusion to the revelation of God’s designs now being manifest for all, something that will only happen in the end times.

When we’re faced with evil and death as the ultimate deterrents of this world we must follow the example of the two prophets in today’s readings and not shy away from preaching the Gospel with conviction. We are all those witnesses, and we’ll be rejected, scorned, and even killed for our belief, but in faith we know that evil and death will not have the last word

Readings: Revelation 11:4–12; Psalm 144:1–2, 9–10; Luke 20:27–40.  See also 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C, 33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Saturday, and 9th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday.

33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading the apostle and evangelist John’s visions of the end time continue with the vision of a mighty angel standing on land and sea bearing a small scroll. John approaches and asks for the scroll. The angel straddling land and sea symbolizes that the message he is bearing, represented by the scroll, is meant for everyone. John asks for the scroll and is instructed to eat the scroll, which is sweet to the taste, but sour to the stomach. The message is sweet because it predicts the final victory of God’s people, but also sour because it’ll be a hard won victory: the message also announces the suffering of God’s people.

As Christians this prediction should not shock us: Our Lord said we had to take up our cross and follow him, and that anyone who sought to save his life would lose it. Christianity without crosses is incomplete; it wouldn’t event represent the Christianity of its Founder. We will also face suffering and persecution for being part of God’s people, but we continue in hope knowing that the victory has already been won by Our Lord.

Whether we’re oblivious or defeatist, today’s message is a call to hope and perseverance. Let’s not shy away from suffering, because it is the path to victory.

Readings: Revelation 10:8–11; Psalm 119:14, 24, 72, 103, 111, 131; Luke 19:45–48. See also 33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Friday and 8th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year I.

 

33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday, Year II

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The Lamb in today’s First Reading is the Risen Christ, and a vision of Heaven wouldn’t be complete without the Lamb who “seemed to have been slain,” yet lives. Even after Our Lord’s Resurrection he bears the wounds of the crucifixion. His “seven horns” and “seven eyes” symbolize the fullness of power (horns) and knowledge (eyes) that he possesses. He is also the Messiah: a descendant of David, who in turn was descended from the tribe of Judah. As lion, which we saw yesterday, he is the noblest of the tribe of Judah and of David’s line.

The scroll with seven seals is at the right hand of God to show its importance, and its seven seals show that it is totally hidden from all but God, which is why the Lamb is the only one who can open it: it is the Lord’s saving plan in its entirety, a plan that Our Lord alone was able to accomplish. For us God’s saving plan is always shrouded in mystery. John is grateful and we should be too: as today’s First Reading reminds us, Our Lord redeemed us with his blood, all of us, whether we accept it or not.

The elders bear the prayers of the saints as incense; those prayers are our prayers. A speck of incense is small, but it does reach God. Let’s pray not only in thanksgiving, but for our redemption and the redemption of the whole world. The Lamb’s blood has been shed for that purpose.

Readings: Revelation 5:1–10; Psalm 149:1b–6a, 9b; Luke 19:41–44. See also 33rd Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday.