First Sunday of Advent

Catechism Links [1]

CCC 668-677, 769: the final tribulation and Christ’s return in glory
CCC 451, 671, 1130, 1403, 2817: “Come, Lord Jesus!”
CCC 439, 496, 559, 2616: Jesus is the Son of David
CCC 207, 210-214, 270, 1062-1063: God is faithful and merciful

“The Triumph Of Christianity Over Paganism”
by Gustave Doré, c. 1868

Readings for the First Sunday of Advent [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Reading 1: Jeremiah 33:14-16
 
The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will fulfill the promise
I made to the house of Israel and Judah.
In those days, in that time,
I will raise up for David a just shoot ;
he shall do what is right and just in the land.
In those days Judah shall be safe
and Jerusalem shall dwell secure;
this is what they shall call her:
“The LORD our justice.”
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Commentary on Jer 33:14-16
 
Jeremiah predicts the continuation of the dynasty of King David (“I will raise up for David a just shoot”) in fulfillment of the prophecy made to Nathan in 2 Samuel 7:11-16 (see also Psalm 89:35ff). "The reference to the true [just] branch [shoot] of David's line draws on Isaiah 11:1-16 which portrays the righteous Davidic monarch as a branch ('tsemah') from the root of Jesse, language which is at home in the agriculturally centered world of ancient Israel." [5] To contemporaries of the period, this would have announced the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem. This selection is the second time the prophet has predicted the coming of the Messiah, the first being in Jeremiah 23:5-6. This prediction, fulfilled in Jesus, is one reason so much stress is laid on Jesus’ genealogy.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14
 
R. (1b) To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
 
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior,
and for you I wait all the day.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
 
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and teaches the humble his way.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
 
All the paths of the LORD are kindness and constancy
toward those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
The friendship of the LORD is with those who fear him,
and his covenant, for their instruction.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
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Commentary on Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14
 
In this hymn of thanksgiving, we hear the petition we have all made many times.  In paraphrase, it is “God tell me what you want me to do.  Tell me how to follow you.”  It goes on to say how blessed are those who have found that path. This selection gives a clear sense of the Lord’s path announced by angelic messengers, prophets, and the very Law of Moses: the culmination and completion of God’s covenants in the tradition of the Hebrews.
 
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Reading II: 1 Thessalonians 3:12—4:2
 
Brothers and sisters:
May the Lord make you increase and abound in love
for one another and for all,
just as we have for you,
so as to strengthen your hearts,
to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones.  Amen.
 
Finally, brothers and sisters,
we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that,
as you received from us
how you should conduct yourselves to please God
and as you are conducting yourselves
you do so even more.
For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
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Commentary on 1 Thes 3:12—4:2
 
St. Paul speaks to the Thessalonians about encouraging their already fervent love for one another and the Lord. This selection (4:1ff) begins the apostle’s exhortation on holiness and chastity. He has warned them earlier that they will be facing resistance, and that it is now necessary to strengthen themselves for what is to come. The reference to "instructions" refers to Christian morality. "Christian morality is not viewed as natural law, but as the will of God (Matthew 6:10). sanctification: This connotes a progress toward holiness, a likeness to God (3:13). [6]
 
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Gospel: Luke 21:25-28, 34-36
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.
 
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man.”
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Commentary on Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
 
Jesus finds it necessary to remind his disciples not to become complacent in their practice of the faith. It is one of his sternest warnings that the end will come without notice and judgment will be immediate. The final verses of this same Gospel reading concluded the Liturgical Year, having been used the previous day (Saturday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time) and is repeated to begin the Advent season. This dual use emphasizes that we celebrate not only the coming of Christ in his nativity but look forward to his second coming in glory.
 
"It is clear from this short section that Luke (different from 1 Thessalonians) eliminated the idea of an immediate Parousia.  Sudden trials will strike everyone, and so there is need of continual vigilance.  Everyone, however, will eventually take part in the Parousia.  How a person lives now determines how he will 'stand before the Son of Man.'" [7] 
 
CCC: Lk 21:27 671, 697; Lk 21:34-36 2612
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Reflection:
 
Happy new year! It is indeed the beginning of the new church or liturgical year.  We start fresh, as we do at the beginning of the new calendar year, seeking to improve ourselves through resolutions and promises.  The main differences are, in the year of our faith journey, we seek to draw closer to our Lord Jesus’ example of love for others and love of God.  We start our efforts to become more Christ-like by recalling that Jesus has come and is coming – our Advent season.
 
The Advent season is intended to be analogous to a child’s gleeful anticipation on Christmas Eve.  From a spiritual perspective, our Advent season is intended to rekindle our anticipation for Christ’s ultimate victory, coming in glory, robed in light, by reminding us of his enigmatic first coming for our salvation.
 
I have marveled before that for all of our reflection and prayer, for all of our questioning and study, we find, in the millennia since Christ walked the earth as man, that others, graciously endowed with the gift of faith, have reflected more deeply and expressed more clearly the ideals the Lord saw fit to impart. In this case I offer the words of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church who served us until his death in 386 AD as an example:
 
We do not preach only one coming of Christ, but a second as well, much more glorious than the first. The first coming was marked by patience; the second will bring the crown of a divine kingdom.
 
In general, what relates to our Lord Jesus Christ has two aspects. There is a birth from God before the ages, and a birth from a virgin at the fullness of time. There is a hidden coming, like that of rain on fleece, and a coming before all eyes, still in the future.
 
At the first coming he was wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger. At his second coming he will be clothed in light as in a garment. In the first coming he endured the cross, despising the shame; in the second coming he will be in glory, escorted by an army of angels.
 
We look then beyond the first coming and await the second. At the first coming we said: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. At the second we shall say it again; we shall go out with the angels to meet the Lord and cry out in adoration: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. (From the Catechetical Lectures of St. Cyril of Jerusalem) 
 
St. Cyril reminds us, as does the Gospel from St. Luke, that the kingdom of God has not yet been fulfilled. While we most commonly use this Advent season to anticipate the triumph of the manger, we need also to be vigilant in our faith as the Lord’s second coming needs to find us diligent in our faith.
 
What then will our Advent celebration look like this year?  Will there be enough thought and prayer over the Lord’s arrivals to offset the secular flavor that has taken over the public notion of this season?  Will we be able to remain focused on the sense of impending liberation from the bonds of sin in order to avoid the sins this secular season seems to bring out in many – greed, avarice, gluttony, and indifference?
 
This season, perhaps more than any in modern history will be the “Holiday Season,” not the Christmas season, and Advent will be seen as an anachronism.  The majority of our fellow citizens prefer that we not emphasize the “reason for the season” as the old saying goes.  They prefer that it be a time of fun and good cheer, a time for excesses of all sorts, not the least of which is spending on meaningless gifts for the sake of spending.
 
How are we to avoid being sucked into this sense of self-service? Well, first we remind ourselves daily of what we look forward to.  There are some excellent aids developed especially for this and they have traditionally been available to anyone who wants one.  This year we are also given a special prayer to start us off from none other than St. Paul.  He writes to the Thessalonians a prayer that could have been directed at each of us:
 
Brothers and sisters:
May the Lord make you increase and abound in love
for one another and for all,
just as we have for you,
so as to strengthen your hearts,
to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones.  Amen.
 
At the heart of this prayer is the one key command that will keep us focused on what is important: “Love one another.”  It was the Lord’s commandment to us and the one he exemplified as he came to the humble manger, born of our Blessed Mother. If we can keep the memory of that command alive, and how it came to us, we will triumph over all attempts to pervert the season of joyous anticipation into something it was never intended to be.
 
Our Scripture for this first week of our Advent season expresses this very thought.  So, in this new year, we ask that you pledge yourselves to that ancient axiom: “As we Worship [Pray], So we Believe, So we Live.”
 
Pax

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[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture is “The Triumph Of Christianity Over Paganism” by Gustave Doré, c. 1868.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[4]The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] The Jewish Study Bible, © 2004 Oxford University Press, New York, NY, p. 996.
[6] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 48:23 p. 231.
[7] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 44:149, p. 155.

Feast of Saint Andrew, Apostle

Biographical Information about St. Andrew
 

“St. Andrew”
taken from an antique French holy card,
artist and date unknown

Readings for the Feast of Saint Andrew [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2] 
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Romans 10:9-18 
 
Brothers and sisters:
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord
and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.
For one believes with the heart and so is justified,
and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.
The Scripture says,
No one who believes in him will be put to shame.
There is no distinction between Jew and Greek;
the same Lord is Lord of all,
enriching all who call upon him.
For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
 
But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed?
And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without someone to preach?
And how can people preach unless they are sent?
As it is written,
How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!
But not everyone has heeded the good news;
for Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed what was heard from us?
Thus faith comes from what is heard,
and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
But I ask, did they not hear?
Certainly they did; for
 
Their voice has gone forth to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.
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Commentary on Rom 10:9-18 
 
As part of his dialogue regarding why the Jews had failed in their mission, St. Paul calls upon the Roman Christians to profess their belief that Jesus is the Son of God, divine in his own person.  The Jewish converts could not say the name of God but referred instead to Yahweh as “Lord.”  By asking the Christians to “confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord,“ they professed their belief in his divinity and what flowed from that profession was justification (to be made just as if one had not sinned).  In justification is salvation since the physical act of confessing with the lips must come from an interior faith from the heart. 
 
The evangelist continues his call to faith explaining that this path to salvation is open to all peoples (“There is no distinction between Jew and Greek”).  This invitation does not have any prerequisites (i.e. one does not have to have come to belief through Judaism) to be unified in Christ, paraphrasing Isaiah 28:16. 
 
In the next section (v. 14-21) St. Paul poses questions as to why the Jewish people forfeited their status as favorites in the eyes of God.  Perhaps there were reasons which he rhetorically proposes and then rejects: did they not hear; did they not understand?  To the question, have they not heard?  St. Paul responds quoting Psalm 19:5, which concludes this passage. 
 
CCC: Rom 10:9 343, 186, 449; Rom 10:12-13 2739; Rom 10:13 2666; Rom 10:14-15 875; Rom 10:17 875
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 19:8, 9, 10, 11 
 
R. (10) The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
or:
R. (John 6:63) Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
 
The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul;
The decree of the Lord is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
or:
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
 
The precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
The command of the Lord is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
or:
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
 
The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;
The ordinances of the Lord are true,
all of them just.
R. The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
or:
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
 
They are more precious than gold,
than a heap of purest gold;
Sweeter also than syrup
or honey from the comb.
R. The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
or:
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
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Commentary on Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11 
 
Psalm 19 is a hymn of praise. In this passage, we give praise for God’s gift of Mosaic Law which guides us in our daily lives. The hymn extols the virtues of obedience and steadfastness to the law and its precepts. The passage also reflects the idea that following God’s statutes leads to peace and prosperity. 
 
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Gospel: Matthew 4:18-22 
 
As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers,
Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew,
casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen.
He said to them,
“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
At once they left their nets and followed him.
He walked along from there and saw two other brothers,
James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets.
He called them, and immediately they left their boat and their father
and followed him.
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Commentary on Mt 4:18-22 
 
This passage is the account in St. Matthew’s Gospel of the call of the first disciples. The important principle provided in this episode is the fact that the four disciples called by Jesus, the first four, followed the Lord immediately.  It is recorded that they left their entire livelihood and all their possessions behind and followed Jesus. (A similar abruptness is found also in the call of Levi, Matthew 9:9.)
 
Ironically the notes on this section point out that three of the four called, Peter, James, and John, are distinguished by a particular closeness to Jesus. The reason that Matthew’s account indicates the disciples left work and family immediately, without any explanation, may be due in part to Andrew’s earlier encounter with Jesus as a disciple of John the Baptist (John 1:40)
 
CCC: Mt 4:19 878; Mt 4:21 878
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Reflection: 
 
What would the world be like if St. Andrew had not become a disciple of St. John the Baptist?  We don’t know what called him to follow the Voice, to become a member of that close circle of devout followers.  But we do know that if the apostle had not, he would never have been sent, as tradition holds, with his companion to ask Jesus if he was the one to come or if they should expect someone else. 
 
And what if he had not done as St. John had suggested and heard those words: “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the good news proclaimed to them” (Luke 7:22)?  Those words had meaning beyond the obvious.  While indeed the blind, the lame, and deaf were healed, those events were a direct reference to the prophecy of Isaiah (Isaiah 61:1). 
 
[Note: there are two different versions about the call of Andrew and his brother, Simon (St. Peter).  In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus calls them while they are fishing with their father (Mark 1:16; Matthew 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11), although we notice in Luke, Andrew is not mentioned.  However, in the Gospel of St. John, hear the following: "Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated Anointed)." (John 1:35-41) The reflection above sort of cross-references the two versions of the call.] 
 
And what did St. Andrew do?  He returned to the Baptist and then, perhaps taking St. John’s own mission to the next level went immediately to his brother (John 1:37-40).  The words he spoke to him echo through the thousands of years that have passed.  They are engraved in the heart of every Christian who has ever come to faith, "We have found the Messiah." 
 
From that point forward the profession of faith made by and to the brother of Peter, who would be given the keys to the kingdom, would shape the whole world.  To those first four disciples would be added eight more, including the one who betrayed him.  From them, the Gospel of the Lord would travel to every part of the world.  It began with a simple statement of faith - "We have found the Messiah." 
 
Today as we celebrate the feast day of St. Andrew, we thank God for the gift of faith, the faith he gave St. Andrew and all the apostles and the faith he gives us.  We ask on this day that St. Andrew will intercede for us, and the one he found will bless us with an abundance of faith, so that we in our turn may announce it to the world - "We have found the Messiah." 
 
Pax
 
In other years on this date: Saturday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

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[1] The Picture is “St. Andrew” taken from an antique French holy card, artist and date unknown.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, except for the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.

Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

“All is Vanity”
by C. Allen Gilbert, c. 1900’s

 
Readings for Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Revelation 20:1-4, 11—21:2
 
I, John, saw an angel come down from heaven,
holding in his hand the key to the abyss and a heavy chain.
He seized the dragon, the ancient serpent,
which is the Devil or Satan,
and tied it up for a thousand years and threw it into the abyss,
which he locked over it and sealed,
so that it could no longer lead the nations astray
until the thousand years are completed.
After this, it is to be released for a short time.
 
Then I saw thrones; those who sat on them were entrusted with judgment.
I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded
for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God,
and who had not worshiped the beast or its image
nor had accepted its mark on their foreheads or hands.
They came to life and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
 
Next I saw a large white throne and the one who was sitting on it.
The earth and the sky fled from his presence
and there was no place for them.
I saw the dead, the great and the lowly, standing before the throne,
and scrolls were opened.
Then another scroll was opened, the book of life.
The dead were judged according to their deeds,
by what was written in the scrolls.
The sea gave up its dead;
then Death and Hades gave up their dead.
All the dead were judged according to their deeds.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the pool of fire.
(This pool of fire is the second death.)
Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life
was thrown into the pool of fire.
 
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth.
The former heaven and the former earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more.
I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
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Commentary on Rv 20:1-4, 11—21:2
 
In this selection from John’s Book of Revelation we are given the vision of Christ defeating sin and death (“holding in his hand the key to the abyss and a heavy chain. He seized the dragon, the ancient serpent, which is the Devil or Satan, and tied it up for a thousand years and threw it into the abyss”). The thousand years specified is not to be taken literally. Like other numerical references in apocalyptic literature different numbers have different significance (i.e., 7 the perfect number or fullness, 6 the least perfect number, hence 666 the mark of the beast, and 40 the number of years for a generation), this one simply represents a long period of time between Christ’s first victory and his second coming, the Parousia.
 
We also are given the image of the final judgment, when the dead rise from their graves (I saw the dead, the great and the lowly, standing before the throne) with a list of all they had done, the scrolls. They were judged according to their actions and then either passed to the new Jerusalem or cast into the pool of fire.
 
"The author then turns his attention to the resurrection, when all men will be judged according to their works.  He describes this by using the metaphor of two books.  One of these records the actions of men (as in Daniel 7:10 and other passages of the Old Testament, cf., e.g., Isaiah 65:6; Jeremiah 22:30).  The second book contains the names of those predestined to eternal life (an idea inspired by Daniel 12:1; cf. also, e.g., Exodus 32:32).  This is a way of showing that man cannot attain salvation by his own efforts alone: it is God who saves him: however, he needs to act in such a way that he responds to the destiny God has marked out for him."[4]
 
Finally comes the new age, and God ruling over it for eternity symbolized by the wedding.
 
CCC: Rv 20:12 677; Rv 21:1-22:5 117; Rv 21:1-2 756; Rv 21:1 1043; Rv 21:2-4 677; Rv 21:2 757, 1045, 2016
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 84:3, 4, 5-6a and 8a
 
R. (Rev. 21:3b) Here God lives among his people.
 
My soul yearns and pines
for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh
cry out for the living God.
R. Here God lives among his people.
 
Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest
in which she puts her young–
Your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my king and my God!
R. Here God lives among his people.
 
Blessed they who dwell in your house!
continually they praise you.
Blessed the men whose strength you are!
They go from strength to strength.
R. Here God lives among his people.
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Commentary on Ps 84:3, 4, 5-6a and 8a
 
Psalm 84 is a hymn of praise for those who depend on God (Blessed they who dwell in your house). The house of the Lord invites all who are faithful, from the largest to the smallest.  Those who find a home in God's temple are blessed; they find strength flowing from the Lord, sustaining them.
 
CCC: Ps 84:3 1770
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Gospel: Luke 21:29-33
 
Jesus told his disciples a parable.
“Consider the fig tree and all the other trees.
When their buds burst open,
you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near;
in the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that the Kingdom of God is near.
Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.”
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Commentary on Lk 21:29-33
 
As part of his discourse on the destruction of Jerusalem, St. Luke’s Gospel gives us the parable of the fig tree (see also Mark 13:28-32 and Matthew 24:32-35). In Palestine, nothing looks as dead in the winter as a fig tree. However, in the spring fig trees bloom to new life (see also Joel 2:22). This imagery is seen at two levels. First, the Lord himself must undergo his passion before taking his place at the right hand of the Father. Second, more prophetically, the Christian community must also undergo trials before coming to its own springtime of rebirth, alluding to the persecutions to come.
 
"The parabolic teaching of vv 29–31 reinforces the teaching in v 28 about finding signs of the nearness of deliverance in the unfolding sequence of disasters. v 32 sets a limiting time frame for the whole of the anticipated future. And v 33 points to the solid and abiding nature of the words of Jesus amidst all this sea of change." [5]
 
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Reflection:
 
The line we walk in tightening circles is drawing back upon itself as we mark this second to the last day in the liturgical year.  This Sunday marks the beginning of the Advent season, and we must prepare to shift gears, as they say.  Today we continue our thoughts about the end of all things and hope desperately that our names are inscribed in the book of life. We have faith that we will eventually find the eternal home promised by our Lord.
 
Jesus’ parable in the Gospel reminds us that the end will come sooner than we think, and that we dare not procrastinate.  The new Jerusalem is waiting for us and the longer we delay in our own preparations the longer the journey will be to get to that final destination.
 
The analogy of approaching the mirror has been used before, but it is apt at this time as we come to the end of another year.  Looking in a mirror from a great distance, we see ourselves, our spiritual selves, looking very presentable.  Especially if we are standing next to our brothers and sisters, we may even look positively sparkling.  As we draw closer to the mirror, representing our spiritual introspection over the past year, we begin to see things that we had not noticed before.  We see little flaws that were not apparent from the previous distance but become glaringly apparent as we stand closer.
 
Each cycle of spiritual effort brings us closer to that mirror, and each year we find elements of our faith lives that need to be repaired, replaced, or completely overhauled.  Just as the fastidious dresser looks at each seam, at each article of clothing, its color, its fit, the way it lies, so we look at each element of our spiritual lives.  What seemed fine just a short year ago may not do at all with our new heightened sense of spiritual awareness.
 
For now, we take our steps toward a new Jerusalem where there is no more suffering or pain, where all our spiritual blessings will be heaped upon us, and we will know what it is like to be in the presence of pure love; for that is what God is. We have just one more day beyond this one to contemplate that wondrous journey before we will look once more at the mirror to see if we have prepared ourselves for the advent of the king, who is Christ.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used today is “All is Vanity” by C. Allen Gilbert, c. 1900’s.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL).  This re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] The Navarre Bible: “Revelation and Hebrews and Catholic Letters,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p. 116.
[5] John Nolland, Luke 18:35–24:53, vol. 35C, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 1010.

Thursday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time - Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day [United States]
 
For the Celebration of Thanksgiving Day (United States)

“Angels of the Nativity Altar,”
San Isadora Del Campo, Saville
by Deacon Robert Lackney

 
Readings for Thursday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9a
 
I, John, saw another angel coming down from heaven,
having great authority,
and the earth became illumined by his splendor.
He cried out in a mighty voice:
 
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great.
She has become a haunt for demons.
She is a cage for every unclean spirit,
a cage for every unclean bird,
a cage for every unclean and disgusting beast.”
 
A mighty angel picked up a stone like a huge millstone
and threw it into the sea and said:
 
“With such force will Babylon the great city be thrown down,
and will never be found again.
No melodies of harpists and musicians,
flutists and trumpeters,
will ever be heard in you again.
No craftsmen in any trade
will ever be found in you again.
No sound of the millstone
will ever be heard in you again.
No light from a lamp
will ever be seen in you again.
No voices of bride and groom
will ever be heard in you again.
Because your merchants were the great ones of the world,
all nations were led astray by your magic potion.”
 
After this I heard what sounded like
the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying:
 
“Alleluia!
Salvation, glory, and might belong to our God,
for true and just are his judgments.
He has condemned the great harlot
who corrupted the earth with her harlotry.
He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”
 
They said a second time:
 
“Alleluia! Smoke will rise from her forever and ever.”
 
Then the angel said to me, “Write this:
Blessed are those who have been called
to the wedding feast of the Lamb.”
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Commentary on Rv 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9a
 
This passage is a “stirring dirge over the fall of Babylon-Rome. The perspective is prophetic, as if the fall of Rome had already taken place. The imagery here, as elsewhere in this book, is not to be taken literally. The vindictiveness of some of the language, borrowed from the scathing Old Testament prophecies against Babylon, Tyre, and Nineveh (Isaiah 23; 24; 27; Jeremiah 50-51; Ezekiel 26-27), is meant to portray symbolically the inexorable demands of God's holiness and justice; cf. Introduction. The section concludes with a joyous canticle on the future glory of heaven.)” [4]
 
CCC: Rv 19:1-8 2642; Rv 19:1-9 677; Rv 19:9 1329, 1602, 1612
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 100:1b-2, 3, 4, 5
 
R. (Rev. 19: 9a) Blessed are they who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
 
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.
R. Blessed are they who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
 
Know that the LORD is God;
he made us, his we are;
his people, the flock he tends.
R. Blessed are they who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
 
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him; bless his name.
R. Blessed are they who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
 
For he is good:
the LORD, whose kindness endures forever,
and his faithfulness, to all generations.
R. Blessed are they who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
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Commentary on Ps 100:1b-2, 3, 4, 5
 
Psalm 100 is a communal song of thanksgiving in which the psalmist invites the people to come to God with praise and thanksgiving for the wondrous things he has done. In this selection the psalmist gives thanks for God’s favor and his unending support in all good things. It affirms God’s saving grace given to his sons and daughters through all generations. The song recalls God the creator whose love and fidelity knows no bounds.
 
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Gospel: Luke 21:20-28
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies,
know that its desolation is at hand.
Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains.
Let those within the city escape from it,
and let those in the countryside not enter the city,
 
for these days are the time of punishment
when all the Scriptures are fulfilled.
Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days,
for a terrible calamity will come upon the earth
and a wrathful judgment upon this people.
They will fall by the edge of the sword
and be taken as captives to all the Gentiles;
and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles
until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
 
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.”
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Commentary on Lk 21:20-28
 
The apocalyptic discourse continues in St. Luke’s Gospel. The first part of this section deals with the destruction of Jerusalem (which actually took place in 70 AD). Since this event took place before the Gospel was published, Luke and his community look back upon the event. This provides the assurance that, just as Jesus' prediction of Jerusalem's destruction was fulfilled, so too will the announcement of their final redemption come to pass. The prediction itself is validated by the historical account of Eusebius of Casoria. When the Christians saw the approach of the Roman armies, they recalled Christ’s prediction and fled across the Jordan.[5]
 
The second part of the reading provides a description of the actual events of the end times. The Lord assures his disciples that he will return and those who follow him should not be afraid, even as the terrible signs manifest themselves upon the earth.
 
CCC: Lk 21:24 58, 674; Lk 21:27 671, 697
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Reflection:
 
There is a kind of paradox associated with the peace of Christ which we are offered that bears some reflection.  We have all heard stories about people who, in moments of severe stress, are able to accomplish physical feats that are seemingly impossible (a mother lifting a car off of her pinned child; a father standing on two broken legs catching his children as they leap from the second story window of their burning home).  These documented events are the result of a physiological rush of adrenaline – a fear reflex.  In the cases cited, this reflex was able to stimulate incredible physical strength and deaden pain reflexes.  We must ask: would the peace of Christ interrupt this process, putting the devout Christian at a disadvantage?
 
The consideration of this question is, to be sure, fanciful.  The examples used and the abilities exhibited during times of peril happen completely without conscious will or thought.  The brain circuits used are not the same consciousness centers over which the peace of Christ descends.  We submit that in one whose faith is strong enough, whose spiritual growth is so advanced, that this state of calm assurance would actually allow the physical reaction to be channeled in such a way as to have an even more effective outcome.  We take for example the expression found in St. Luke’s Gospel: “People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world.”
 
People die of fright because the same fear reflex that directs some people to heroic actions causes others to go into cardiac arrest and die.  In most cases, panic, the most common expression of “the fear reflex,” causes devastating outcomes.  Take, for example, the swimmer who has a cramp and can no longer tread water.  When an unwary lifeguard or some well-meaning swimmer comes to help the person, they are likely to be fiercely grasped (using that same adrenaline enhanced strength) and pulled down, frequently to be drowned along with their panicked victim.  How often have we heard about panic driven crowds trampling others to death as they try to escape a threat?
 
The peace of Christ can stave off fear and allow us to see more clearly in difficult times.  When we know and are convinced that God is there to help us, to buoy us up, in times of strife, we can take actions with calm assurance that avoid the disaster panic can bring.  That peace is what we are offered by the one who defeated death and sin for our salvation.  That peace is what we accept when we crown Christ the king in our lives. (There is a more dramatic expression of the Peace of Christ found in the lives of many saints, especially martyrs like St. Andrew Dung-Lac and his companions whose memorial we recently celebrated, but that is reserved for another time.)
 
Today we accept the life in the world to come.  We know and understand that, in God’s time, the end of this world will come, and we will stand before the throne of the Just Judge, the Lamb of God.  In his consolation and mercy, we find his peace.
 
Pax
 

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[1] The picture is “Angels of the Nativity Altar,” San Isadora Del Campo, Saville by Deacon Robert Lackney.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] NAB footnote for Revelation 18:1-19:4.
[5] History of the Church from Christ to Constantine Vol. 3,Ch 5, 3.