End Times. (2021-11-14, Sunday-33)

___CLICK / HEAR AUDIO OF SUN. Nov. 14, 2021 HOMILY__

__ Click / Watch Video: "Sun. Nov. 14" (7:30 am Mass)___

Homily – Nov.  14, 2021  /  33^rd Sunday (Year B)

●  Daniel 12:1-3  ●   Psalm 16 ● Hebrews 10:11-14, 18 ●  + Mark 13:24-32 ●

Title:  End Times

[__00-a_]   One of my joys as a parish priest here at Our Lady of Lourdes is to learn from you and so many of our parishes, about your esteem your love for our parish, altar and sanctuary and building and how high the high esteem in which you hold our parish altar sanctuary and building. A few weeks ago, I learned this lesson again, a few weeks ago, a married couple who live in Colorado, returned here tour Lady of Lourdes in West Orange for the renewal of their wedding marriage vows on their 25th anniversary. Which, in which both of them came all dressed up, together with their parents who were here in 1996, for their, for their wedding. And we're here for this 2021 celebration with their two college age children. Of course, they could have celebrated at a church in Colorado, in their Denver suburb, but really wanted to make a pilgrimage here for this renewal of vows in the church where they were married. On the one hand, one could say that after 25 years, everything is different.

 

[__00-b_]    They look different. They have a family now, I'm not the priest who was present that day. But their journey and pilgrimage to this church is a reminder that -- while many circumstances of their lives have changed - that they can still walk down this aisle with a similar anticipation and excitement of their wedding day.

Also, their vows and promises have a power which has not passed away. Their vows endure, beyond this building. One day – in 1996 - their vows were pronounced only in this building and existed only here.

But then those vows became a living reality beyond this building. And certainly their vows have had a permanence beyond this church of 1 Eagle Rock Ave, West Orange, NJ, 07052.

 

[__00-c_]     These vows are an example of words and vows and promises which endure and do not pass away. The gospel is Sunday concludes with these words from Christ,  “the heavens and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

Jesus is speaking of permanence and strength and stability. In this reflection I'd like to touch on.

But in order to Jesus to talk about stability, he also is talking about some things that are not stable, that are unstable.

So I'd like to talk about what Jesus is saying about

[what's unstable, what is unstable?

How is it unstable?

And why is it unstable? ]

And what's our hope in all of this? ]

[__01_]     What is unstable?

What's unstable is the Temple, the Temple building. Earlier in this same chapter 13, Jesus's disciples doing, they're out for a walk in downtown central Jerusalem, and they're admiring the structure and the architecture. And they are very impressed with what is stable and permanent – or seems to be -- in the skyline in the city of Jerusalem. One of them says to Jesus, “Teacher, look at these enormous buildings.”

And Jesus said to him, “you see these great buildings, not one stone will be left upon another, all will be torn down.”  It is remarkable, and also a scandal to some people that Jesus will suggest that the temple is neither stable nor permanent. His disciples also pick up on this and they want to know more. And they asked him privately, ”tell us Jesus, when will this occur? When will this sign, what will be the sign that all this is coming to an end?”

So what and they want to know because what a devout Jewish person knew to be stable and permanent was the temple. And so it's a signal of the end of the world that the temple would be torn down. And in fact, the access of the Jewish people had been impeded and hindered in the past not only due to the previous destruction of the temple, but also to the dispersion or diaspora of the Jewish people as a result of war, and captivity. Every time that Jewish people lost the temple, it was a sign that their world as they knew it was ending. And on a smaller scale for us for a short time, during the COVID pandemic, for a few months, we lost access to our temple to our house of worship, which taught us that we cannot take our own house and place of worship for granted. We also learned that our preparation and place of worship was not limited to one building, we're glad to be back in our house.

What could be unstable about our about our faith in Christ as if we only see him as a building or as a structure, Jesus is not a structure, he is an enduring, invisible reality, similar to the reality of a wedding vow, that is deeper than any wedding ring or wedding dress or wedding ceremony.

In short, Jesus is a sacrament the visible sign of an invisible reality. And what Jesus is teaching in this chapter of Mark with all its references to the end of the world, and the end of time, is that the temple of Jerusalem is going to be torn down. But what Jesus is really referring to is the temple of his body, the temple of his life, which is going to be subject to the passion and dying on the cross. He doesn't want His disciples to lose hope when the body is destroyed. So that's what is going to happen.

 

[__02_]     How is it un-stable?

How is this instability going to be demonstrated? Right now the disciples are walking as one unified group, this is how they are they're sightseeing and observing the buildings. But soon their unity will be disrupted, Jesus Iscariot will be the betrayer Peter will be the denier. All of them, except one will be in their own little exile playing their own version of Reality TV / Survivor after Calvary. Jesus is the brother who is handed over for execution. And Jesus wants them to know that how it goes for him, how is how it's going to go for them. Jesus describes how the calamity or the end of the world is going to be brother will hand over brother for execution. And likewise the father has child children will turn against their parents that have been put to death, because of my name, you will be hated by everyone. Nonetheless, the man who holds out to the end is the one who will come through safe.

How is the temple destroyed? How was Jesus destroyed? by people who would normally love and support each other, turning upon each other? It happens every day, perhaps? Is there someone in your family by whom you feel betrayed? Is there someone close to you whom you have heard intentionally or inadvertently, either on purpose or not on purpose, the temple or relate of our relationships can be torn down from within? And how do they survive? We can survive? They survive not just by our own power, they've survived survived by God's grace, how can we survive someone sinning against us? How can we have the courage and humility to seek forgiveness because we know that

Jesus has died and paid for our sins, we are made more stable with him. This is how it could happen. It can happen because our relationships can be unstable on their own, but how they can be made stable is with his help.

[__03_]     Why is it un-stable?

This is the why

Jesus has told us what is unstable, the temple structure is unstable because it is of stone in earth. And even our lives are unstable. If we put our faith in things that are only material. Jesus is warning us about the end of the world, not simply because the end is always near. But because he is always near. And he wants us to put our faith in Him to recognize that while we may die, we can live in him. And while our loved ones may die, they can live in him.

And while the world may be unstable in any number of ways, do you feel unstable? Are you unstable, feeling unstable about your house, your finances, your health, your family, anything? You may feel unstable because of someone you have lost or you fear losing. But we don't have to fear losing Jesus for He is our temple. In this regard. Every day is also an anniversary for us. Every day is an anniversary of our faith. Our vow every day is an anniversary of the memorial of his sacrifice for us. And a reminder as we read in the 84^th  Psalm, that “one day within your courts, one day within your house is better than a thousand elsewhere.”  [__fin_]