11/13/2022 - 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

As we reach the end of the liturgical year (next week will be the last Sunday in the liturgical calendar when we will celebrate the Feast of Christ the King, and the following Sunday 27 November, will be the First Sunday in Advent) and as we conclude the Lukan account of the public ministry of Jesus, the Word of God today speaks to us about “the end”.  Living through very difficult times of political unrest and wars raging round the globe and listening to this horrific description of events such as destruction, wars, revolutions, fights, earthquakes, plagues, famines, and fearful sights in the Scriptures, we might forget to hear the real words of Jesus: “Do not be afraid… but the end is not so soon” (Lk 21:9). You and I may not readily admit it, but in our thoughts, we constantly rate ourselves, our performance, worry how others view us and finally whether we are a success or not given our circumstances. You might even wonder if this is not natural or exactly how society wants us to live. Who is your judge? I mean, in the ultimate sense, who do you look to as the judge of the true worth of your actions and your worth as a person? Some of us turn to our parents and judge our actions and our lives on their approval alone. Some of us look to peers – it is peer group judgment that is the ultimate criterion that determines our actions in life. Still others look to no one but themselves to judge the relative goodness, or lack thereof, in their choices and deeds. One of the distinguishing marks of a Christian is the fact that he or she looks forward to the judgment of God. The Christian is aware of the constant in-breaking of God into his or her life. A true Christian sees this not as a threat or in negative terms but rather sees it as a summons, a calling, or as an invitation from God for us to grow. To believe in and assert that Christ will come again is to believe in and assert that we are in the process of becoming, in the process of growing and maturing, and that heaven can begin here on earth. It is a tremendously hopeful vision. It gives us goals. It gives us something to work for. It gives us the power to overcome despair, hopelessness, and the inertia present when we hear ourselves saying, "What’s the use?". Life isn’t meant to be lived in the feverish pursuit of the approval of others. Life begins that way, but heaven help us if it ends that way. When we can muster courage to live genuine lives, a new world opens before us. What will matter very much is whether or not I live in what is right, what is true, what is just, what is beautiful, and what is noble. All of the times I prayed and lived "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done" will be there with me. You and I can work with inner peace. In spite of the most frantic activity and noise we can work secure in God’s judgment, with the peace that comes from knowing we are, in God’s eyes, doing what we must, and doing what is right. Furthermore, we can work with receptive minds, minds that are quiet and able to listen to and perceive what is real in all that we are doing. All of that does not depend on what other people think of me. All of that depends on asking the question "Why did God create me and give me life?" Your life here is very real. You cannot say to yourself: "Well, I’ll really begin to live when I retire." If you think that way then you’re deluding yourself… you are trying to escape the judgment that must be placed on what you choose to do in the here and now, on the life you are living in whatever occupation you now find yourself. What other think is of some value, of course. It always is. And God can be judging you through, with, and in them. But the ultimate reality is that you must be a self-actuating, mature, and independent person who has met the challenge of becoming a true son or daughter of God… the way Jesus did. Like our great heroes and heroines of the past, we need to have the courage and strength to stand alone and be judged by God alone. What we consider today is the First Commandment: "I am the Lord thy God; thou shalt not have strange gods before me." It is God who ought to be the ultimate judge of our worth and our deeds, not others, and not just ourselves. And so you and I, especially in these times, are called to give witness, to give testimony in our world, in our times, that God is the judge of all things.
Fr Tom Kunnel, C.O.