A
few weeks ago my wife and I were visiting in the home of man and his wife, the
man applying to become a deacon In their
living room they have a beautiful painting of the Blessed Mother Mary. She is a
very young woman in this painting, sitting with the scriptures open before her,
and she’s staring not quite into the viewer’s eyes, sort of off into the
distance.
The
man told me the painting is called the Annunciation, and portrays a teenage
Mary at that moment, the scriptures representing the prophecies about to be
realized in her “yes.” In the painting
her hand is raised in such a way so as to signify her acceptance. The painting,
he told me, is a hand-painted copy of the original, painted about 500 years ago,
which survives in a city in Southern Italy.
He
showed me a picture of the original, and I remarked that the look on Mary’s
face is different in their copy, that in the original Mary has a look of peace,
almost a smile, as she looks off into the future. Perhaps considering the joy her Offspring will
bring, the salvation He will bring.
But
in their hand-painted copy, the artist gave Mary a more somber, more foreboding
look even. As if at that moment the
Blessed Virgin could see into the future, see all that would occur, all that
would happen to this child she would bear, all the pain He, and she, would have
to endure. As if she could see at that moment the way in which He would bring
about our salvation.
That
wistful look of Mary came to mind as I was pondering this Gospel. Jesus is, like that painting of His Blessed
Mother, looking far into the future, prophesying. What’s it going to be like? For Himself, and for those who claimed to be
His disciples?
And
a difficult path ahead – is what He foretells.
We’re approaching the end of Luke’s Gospel, just before Our Blessed
Lord’s passion, death and resurrection.
Jesus is prophesying - looking into the future, first of all His own
future – He sees the persecution He will endure, how He will appear before
“kings and governors,” how the temple of His own body will be destroyed.
And,
brothers and sisters, He’s looking into our future as well. Foretelling that the life of His disciples,
including you and me, will not be easy.
Some say we humans tend to be pessimists, that we’re always on guard
against every threat against us, that we’re always seeing the worst
coming.
But
I think we usually think the opposite, that we tend to see good things, rosy
things in our future. I mean, what new
mother has a look of foreboding on her face as she looks upon her infant?
But
we know from experience that life isn’t always good and rosy. Every year makes
this more and more apparent. Who hasn’t experienced the anxiety and suffering
of illness, our own, or our loved ones? Or
the pain of broken relationships. The crushing
fear of loss of work. The grief of the
loss of loved ones. We can honestly pray
with the psalmist “Our span is seventy years, eighty for those who are
strong. And most of these are emptiness
and pain. They pass swiftly and we are gone. Give us joy, O Lord, to balance
our affliction.”
Similarly,
Our Lord is telling us in this Gospel – the life of faith aint gonna be easy. Not if you’re going to be my disciple. You will face ridicule, persecution, and even
hatred, all because of your belief in me.
That prophecy has been found to be true all throughout the history of
the Church, and isn’t it becoming more the case today, huh?
And
in this future of chaos He’s describing, Our Lord is also promising a future of
conflict, of spiritual battle. The forces
of evil against those of good. The
prophet Malachi speaks of that coming battle, and the final judgment, where the
proud and evildoers will finally be burned up, but those who fear His name will
be raised up.
So
what’s the message for you and me in these readings, as we approach the end
time, the second last Sunday of our Church year? I think it’s found in the second reading from
St. Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians.
Be in this world, but not of this world, he seems to be telling us. Follow our good example, Paul says, work
quietly, peacefully, and most importantly, in unity. Don’t let the concerns of this world divide
us one against the other.
And
in the spiritual battles that rage around us, the battles that rage within us,
cling to Him, Our Blessed Lord. Our Lord
promises us in this Gospel that if we persevere, if we remain faithful to Him, faithful
to the end, we have nothing to fear. “Do
not be afraid,” He is telling us. For by
our perseverance, by our faithfulness, we will “secure our lives” – we will
achieve the everlasting peace and joy that He has won for us by His cross and
resurrection.
[For
He is the rock to which we must cling in the storms of this life. Nourished here by His Sacraments, and filled
with His Holy Spirit, we have His promise that He will always remain with us
and that His Holy Spirit is always with us to help us remain in Him. Do not be afraid. I am with you to the end of time.]
[For
He is the rock to which we must cling in the storms of this life. In a moment we will welcome little Eleanor
Justine to the Church, welcome her as a disciple of Jesus Christ. To a life of discipleship that we know won’t
be easy. But guided by your example of
faithfulness, Chris and Laura, and nourished by the Sacraments, beginning
today, she inherits the promise our Lord gives to all of us, that He will always
remain with us and that His Holy Spirit is always with us to help us remain in
Him.]
Now
one other thought - two homilies for the price of one this week.
As
we approach the end of the Church year, we also approach the close of the
Jubilee year of mercy. All around the
world, in every diocese, the Holy Door of mercy will soon be closing. Which to me is kind of a ridiculous concept
because Christ’s mercy is never closed, never ends. But this is a special year, in which we
especially celebrate His never-ending mercy, in which we especially heed His
call to repentance of our sins.
If
we haven’t yet availed ourselves of the special sacrament of mercy, the
Sacrament of Reconciliation, during this Holy Year of Mercy, there is still
time to do so. There is still time to
receive His particular graces during this time, to hear His call to conversion
and turn away from our sin, and receive the magnificent grace of being washed
clean of our sin. What a wondrous way to
pick ourselves up, start over, and live each day ever so much closer to Him,
Our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
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