20181118
LIVING FROM THE FUTURE
18 NOVEMBER,
2018, Sunday, 33rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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Daniel 12:1-3 ©
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Some will wake to everlasting life, some
to shame and disgrace
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‘At that time Michael will stand up, the
great prince who mounts guard over your people. There is going to be a time of
great distress, unparalleled since nations first came into existence. When that
time comes, your own people will be spared, all those whose names are found
written in the Book. Of those who lie sleeping in the dust of the earth many
will awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting disgrace.
The learned will shine as brightly as the vault of heaven, and those who have instructed
many in virtue, as bright as stars for all eternity.’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 15(16):5,8-11 ©
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Preserve me, God, I take
refuge in you.
O Lord, it is you who are my portion and
cup;
it is you yourself who are my
prize.
I keep the Lord ever in my sight:
since he is at my right hand,
I shall stand firm.
Preserve me, God, I take
refuge in you.
And so my heart rejoices, my soul is glad;
even my body shall rest in
safety.
For you will not leave my soul among the
dead,
nor let your beloved know
decay.
Preserve me, God, I take
refuge in you.
You will show me the path of life,
the fullness of joy in your
presence,
at your right hand happiness
for ever.
Preserve me, God, I take
refuge in you.
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Second reading
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Hebrews 10:11-14,18 ©
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When all sins have been forgiven, there
can be no more sin-offerings
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All the priests stand at their duties
every day, offering over and over again the same sacrifices which are quite
incapable of taking sins away. He, on the other hand, has offered one single
sacrifice for sins, and then taken his place forever, at the right hand of God,
where he is now waiting until his enemies are made into a footstool for him. By
virtue of that one single offering, he has achieved the eternal perfection of
all whom he is sanctifying. When all sins have been forgiven, there can be no
more sin offerings.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Mt24:42 44
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Stay awake and stand ready,
because you do not know the hour
when the Son of Man is coming.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Lk21:36
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Stay awake, praying at all times
for the strength to stand with confidence
before the Son of Man.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 13:24-32 ©
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The stars will fall from heaven and the
powers in the heavens will be shaken
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Jesus said to his disciples: ‘In those
days, after the time of distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will lose
its brightness, the stars will come falling from heaven and the powers in the
heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in the
clouds with great power and glory; then too he will send the angels to gather
his chosen from the four winds, from the ends of the world to the ends of
heaven.
‘Take
the fig tree as a parable: as soon as its twigs grow supple and its leaves come
out, you know that summer is near. So with you when you see these things
happening: know that he is near, at the very gates. I tell you solemnly, before
this generation has passed away all these things will have taken place. Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
‘But
as for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither the angels of heaven, nor the
Son; no one but the Father.’
LIVING FROM THE FUTURE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Dan 12:1-3; Ps 15:5, 8-11; Heb 10:11-14.18; Mk 13:24-32 ]
This Sunday is the
penultimate Sunday of the Liturgical year. Next Sunday, we will celebrate the Feast
of Christ the King, when we celebrate the establishment of His Kingdom on earth
as in heaven. These two Sundays are meant to prepare us for the final
judgement to come at the end of time and more specifically, at the end of our
lives. This is the final exam before we reach our ultimate end, which is
union with God. This is where and when God reigns in every human
heart. Indeed, “when that time comes, your own people will be spared, all
those whose names are found written in the Book. Of those who lie sleeping in
the dust of the earth many will awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame
and everlasting disgrace.”
In the meantime, we are
to continue the work began by our Lord in establishing the Kingdom of peace,
love and justice on earth. We
read that “Christ, on the other hand, has offered one single sacrifice for
sins, and then taken his place for ever, at the right hand of God, where he is
now waiting until his enemies are made into a footstool for him.” Through
our service and dedication to the Lord, living an enlightened and virtuous
life, His kingdom will surely be established on earth, beginning in our hearts
first and then with others. “The learned will shine as brightly as the
vault of heaven, and those who have instructed many in virtue, as bright as
stars for all eternity.”
However, the truth is
that not many of us are conscious of our responsibility and goal in life. Many of us do not know where we come from,
our purpose on earth and where we are going after this life on earth.
Many of us go through life aimlessly without any direction and goal. For
many people, life is simply to keep ourselves alive, work so that we can have
money to spend, dine luxuriously and live in style and comfort. Work is
but a means to have a good life on earth. Therefore, we live without a
real purpose. On one hand, we fear death because with death, we think
that everything is finished and gone. That explains why the modern man is
so afraid of death because it means annihilation and non-existence. It
makes all that we do on this earth irrelevant.
So what is the purpose
of life? Why do we do good
or make this world a better place? Why should we help others instead of
just taking care of ourselves? Why bother to save lives, especially those
who are not able to contribute to society? Why should we serve without
remuneration in society? Consequently, since life has no meaning beyond this
world, we work, eat and enjoy as much as we can because after this, there will
be no more. Such people live only for this world without a thought for
tomorrow because they have been taught to believe that there is no
tomorrow. There is only today.
At the other end of the
spectrum, there are those who are so obsessed with the life to come, especially
the final judgement, that they do not live this life to the fullest. They live in fear of punishment upon death
and judgement. They think that God would send them to hell for the wrongs
they had done on this earth. Therefore, their entire life on earth is
like going through police supervision 24 hours a day, every day of their
lives. They are afraid of making mistakes. They live in
guilt. They cannot forgive themselves. They have a
pessimistic and negative outlook on the world. They deny the gifts of
creation that God has given us to enjoy and celebrate. Every day is
lived in mortification and penance, self-denial and in sorrow. They do
not know how to enjoy life or celebrate love and joy. For such people,
there is no life on this earth but only the life to come. They do not
live in the present but in the future. They are as good as dead to this
world because their thoughts are only in the paradisiac life to come.
This world is rotten, contaminated and must be destroyed as what seems to be
suggested in today’s scripture readings from Daniel and the gospel.
This ironical situation
happens because people live life in such a way that they forget that life is a
continuum. In the past, many
of us lived in the future and for the future, because there was so much
suffering in the world. There were epidemics, incurable illness, extreme
poverty, natural disasters, political, religious and civil wars, merciless
killings, and injustices. In such a situation, what else could we hope
for but that this evil and sad world be destroyed so that a new world could
come through the power and grace of God?
On the other hand, those
of us who live in more affluent countries where we do not have to suffer
poverty, hunger, diseases, natural disasters, only want to live for this
life. We
think that we will live here forever. We hoard our money and
things. We live in beautiful houses, drive posh cars and go for luxurious
holidays without a thought for the poor. Sometimes, in order to get such
worldly things, we resort to cheating, manipulation and making use of
people. We do all these things thinking that so long as we are not
caught, we can get away with them. So our life is lived without integrity
and in ignorance, failing to realize that the evil we do will come back to
haunt us.
St Paul reminds us, “Do
not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will
reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap
eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is
right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.” (Gal 6:7-10) Indeed, those who do evil
will allow evil to consume them. Those who are addicted to gambling and
lust will become enslaved by them. Those who are vindictive and
revengeful will be destroyed by the anger in their hearts. We are destroyed
by those evil things that we do. This is not so much the punishment of
God but the law of nature.
So how should we live
our lives meaningfully and in perspective? We must live today fully from
the future. We
must take our bearing from the future, which is our goal in life. This
future has been revealed to us in the scriptures. The prophet
Daniel speaks of the everlasting life promised to us. Jesus taught
us that we “will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and
glory; then too he will send the angels to gather his chosen from the four
winds, from the ends of the world to the ends of heaven.” With one eye
towards heaven, where there is fullness of life with God, the goal of every human
person must now be to live fully on this earth in this life. Knowing what
our future will be, the kind of destiny in store for us, which is a life with
God, a life of peace, love and joy, we must already begin to live this life on
earth.
Most of all, Christ has
shown us the way to the fullness of life by teaching us how to live a
purposeful life; a
life lived in love, in charity, compassion, selfless and humble service and in
truth. Jesus Himself took upon our humanity and endured all the struggles
of humanity. He understands our pains, anxieties, our temptations and our
aspirations. Indeed, the letter of Hebrews says, Christ “has offered one
single sacrifice for sins, and then taken his place for ever, at the right hand
of God. By virtue of that one single offering, he has achieved the eternal
perfection of all whom he is sanctifying. When all sins have been forgiven,
there can be no more sin offerings.” In and through Christ, we know that
our sins are forgiven every time we turn to Him. So we do not have to
live our life in fear, in guilt and in anxiety.
Indeed, we live our
lives with confidence here and now, knowing that what we do and how we live
will make a difference for the world today and our world tomorrow. The New World that is promised by our
Lord need not necessarily be a destruction of this world but a world totally
transformed by love and mercy. Instead of being anxious about the end of
the world as Jesus said, “But as for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither
the angels of heaven, nor the Son; no one but the Father”, we should live this
life as fully as we can.
Hence, let us take the
warning of our Lord. To prepare for death, we need to live fully in this
life. But to live fully
in this world, we must be prepared for death. This is what the Lord is
exhorting us in the parable of the fig tree. “Take the fig tree as a parable:
as soon as its twigs grow supple and its leaves come out, you know that summer
is near. So with you when you see these things happening: know that he is near,
at the very gates. I tell you solemnly, before this generation has passed away
all these things will have taken place.” Let us be alert to the coming of
God’s kingdom at every moment in our lives so that we progress to the next life
in a seamless transition and as a continuum.
We can do this if we
cling to Jesus, the Word of life. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass
away, but my words will not pass away.” The prophet said, “When that time comes, your
own people will be spared, all those whose names are found written in the
Book.” Grounded in the Word of God as the Sword and Light of our lives,
we can truly live the future life today. So with faith, we pray with the
psalmist. “O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup; it is you
yourself who are my prize. I keep the Lord ever in my sight: since he is
at my right hand, I shall stand firm. And so my heart rejoices, my soul
is glad; even my body shall rest in safety. For you will not leave my soul
among the dead, nor let your beloved know decay. You will show me the path of
life, the fullness of joy in your presence, at your right hand happiness for
ever.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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