1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT, YEAR A

Isaiah 2:1-5

Psalm 122

Romans 13:11-14  

Matthew 24:37-44 

THE LORD IS COMING !

On this first Sunday of Advent, we begin a new liturgical year. In ordinary parlance, “advent” means the coming or arrival of an important event, person or invention. In liturgical language, “Advent” is understood to mean the preparatory season for the commemoration of the Birth of Jesus Christ, celebrated at Christmas. But it also reminds us that Jesus comes into our lives every day, and will return gloriously at the end of time. Advent is therefore a period of joyful hope, a season of promises, of vigilant waiting and watchfulness. 

In the Gospel, Jesus invites his disciples to stay awake and be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man; for he will come in an hour which they do not expect. According to him, the people of the time of Noah were submerged in everyday and ordinary pursuits that they forgot the imminence of the destroying flood. They suspected absolutely nothing, and suddenly they were swept away. The disciple of Christ, on the contrary, must be watchful and vigilant at all times.

The certainty that the Lord will come leads us to look to the future with confidence, as the prophet Isaiah tells us. In his vision, there is the pilgrimage of the nations going to Jerusalem, to the mountain of the Lord’s house. And God will establish peace and harmony among the nations. This vision is a divine promise and prompts us to adopt an attitude of pilgrimage, of a journey towards God. Thus, to walk in the light of the Lord, as the prophet invites us, is to leave the darkness of our sins and live in the light of Christ. In this way, Saint Paul is right when he urges us to throw off the works of darkness and behave as we do in the day, avoiding all duplicity and living honestly.

In this season of Advent, we are therefore invited to avoid behaviors that can make us spiritually asleep, such as orgies and drunkenness, promiscuity and lust, rivalry and jealousy. May we seek the presence of the Lord through prayer and good works so that he may find us ready when he comes. Amen

I wish you a Happy New Year and a fruitful Advent Season!!!

SOLEMNITY OF CHRIST, THE KING OF THE UNIVERSE, YEAR C

2 Samuel 5:1-3

Psalm 122

Colossians 1:12-20

Luke 23:35-43

JESUS CHRIST IS KING INDEED

We celebrate today the solemnity of Christ, the King of the Universe, a solemnity that concludes the liturgical year. In effect, the readings present us two images apparently contrasting of Jesus’ kingship. Saint Paul’s hymn, in the second reading, celebrates the preeminence of Christ Jesus and his Lordship over all creation. Thus, Jesus is King and everything is subjected to him. On the other hand, the gospel presents us Jesus rejected, mocked, ridiculed and crucified. 

This is to tell us that we cannot celebrate the kingship of Jesus Christ without looking to the cross. In fact, the gospel reading shows Jesus exercising his power as King from the cross. In answer to the prayer of the other criminal, Jesus declares: “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise”. As such, we see what Saint Paul’s words mean when he says that God “transferred us to the kingdom of his Beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins”. Indeed, Jesus’ power is precisely in his ability to lay down his life for the sake of mankind.

It is therefore undoubtedly obvious that Jesus is King, but not the kind of king we might have imagined or expected. Humanly speaking, we tend to associate kings with power and prestige, nobility and great wealth. The kings of this world are surrounded by people they command and all are their subjects. Often, self interests and egoistic ambitions motivate their rule and decisions. But Jesus is not such a king. He is the King who lays down his life for all. He does not have subjects but friends. 

So, it is important to allow Jesus to reign in our lives at the example of the tribes of Israel. They recognized their need of a king, a king who could protect and lead them in war against their enemies. Consequently, the elders anointed David as their king in Hebron. May we too recognize our need of Jesus as King and Lord of our lives. May our world leaders recognize the kingship of Jesus and take him as their model so that our world may be a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love and peace. Amen

Happy Feast to you.

33RD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR C

Malachi 3:19-20

Ps 97:5-9

2 Thessalonians 3:7-12

Luke 21:5-19

THE END OF TIME

On this last Sunday before the solemnity of Christ the King, the readings speak of the end of times. In the first reading, the prophet Malachi announces “the day of the Lord.” It will be a terrifying day for the proud and evildoers, because they will be destroyed by a consuming fire. But for the God-fearing and righteous ones, it will be a day of justification. For the sun of justice will shine on them with its healing rays.

In the gospel, some people expressed their amazement about the imposing magnificence of the Temple of Jerusalem. Responding to this, Jesus predicted that days were coming when there would not be left stone upon stone; the Temple would be destroyed. He also announced the events that would come before the end of time: tribulation, the rise of false prophets, natural disasters, wars, persecutions of believers, etc. These words are not meant to create panic and fear in us, but rather confidence and perseverance. For the believer will be saved if he remains faithful and perseverant till the end.

In fact, in every age, people have expected the end of the world to happen in their lifetime, as did the Thessalonians. Some of them, persuaded of the imminence of the return of Christ, were unwilling to work and so became a burden on others. But for St Paul, the “imminent” return of the Lord should not make us idle. We are to work diligently as we await the Lord’s return and fulfill our various duties with love and commitment. Our hope for the glorious return of Christ must be accompanied by our daily vigilance.

Indeed, each day is an opportunity for us to bear witness to Christ and continue to do what is good. Our daily work should concretize itself through gestures of solidarity and fraternity, especially towards those in needy. By so doing, we will wait for the Day of the Lord without fear. Therefore, as we celebrate the Sixth World’ Day of the Poor, let us ask the grace to always show concern for the miseries and sufferings of our brothers and sisters in need. Let us also pray that their perseverance and their hope in the Lord may not be in vain. Amen.

32ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR C

2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14

Psalm 17:1, 5-6, 8, 15

2 Thessalonians 2:16–3:5

Luke 20:27-38 

HOPE IN THE RESURRECTION

The main theme of today’s readings is the resurrection of the dead. In the Gospel, the Sadducees present Jesus with a difficult scenario in order to trap Him and reduce the belief in the resurrection to absurdity. But in his reply, Jesus indicates clearly that life after death is not the continuation of life on earth, but its complete transformation by the living God. In the life after death, the children of the resurrection neither marry nor are given in marriage because they become like angels. Therefore, Jesus affirms that there is life after death because “God is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive”. 

As such, the fundamental question to ask is not whether there is life after death or not, but rather what can we do in order to be deemed worthy of the resurrection of the dead. In this way, the hope in the resurrection becomes a source of inspiration and encouragement so as to bear witness to our faith and remain faithful to the end no matter what. This is what we see in the martyrdom of the seven brothers and their mother narrated in the first reading. We discover in the brave words of these Jewish martyrs the hope that God will restore the just to life. 

Indeed, listening to this story, one may ask: what is wrong with eating a little pork if this serves to save one’s live? In fact, there was much more at stake than “pork meat”. The choice was not between eating and not eating pork prohibited by Law (Lev. 11:7-8). It was about remaining faithful to God or obeying the command of Antiochus IV (167-164 B.C.). The seven brothers and their mother chose to die rather than apostatizing like many of their contemporaries. They endured torture and cruelty because they believed that God would raise them to life again.

In our days, the “pork meat” has taken different names: power, popularity, sex, money, job, promotion, etc. And many are those who compromise their Christian identity and virtues in the face of these things. Consequently, like St Paul in the second reading, let us ask God to deliver us from perverse, faithless and wicked people, and guard us from the evil one. May he give us courage like the Maccabees brothers so as to live for him and inherit eternal life. Amen