Reflection: Friday 32rd Ordinary Time
Jesus recalls the Old Testament images of Noah and Lot to remind us that, in the time of judgment, those who live according to God’s word will be saved, while those who give themselves to worldly things and forget about God will face the judgment. Jesus warns us that, if we are not prepared for it before it comes; judgment will come so suddenly that we will not have enough time to prepare. So we should live our lives in ways that prepare us for the coming of the Son of Man.
Reflect on your life and consider what you give most importance to, what will most help you to prepare to face the judgment day. Jesus speaks about the judgment in this way, not to frighten us but to help us to be aware. Imagine that, while you are reading this reflection, the Son of Man comes. The suddenness of his coming leaves no time to ask for forgiveness, to forgive others, to be reconciled with your children, to tell your father that you love him, to help the poor and those in need. Reflecting in this way will raise one’s awareness of how to use time wisely to prepare well for judgment.
Lord, grant us the grace to face the Day of Judgment without fear or regret.
Friday 32nd in Ordinary Time
Opening Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of sacred Scripture. Please open my mind and heart to receive your word with humility and gratitude. Increase my faith, hope, and love so that your word may bear fruit in my daily life.
Encountering Christ:
The End of Time: Towards the end of each liturgical year, the Church reflects upon the end of time. “The ‘resurrection of all the dead’… will precede [Christ’s coming] ‘in his glory, and all the angels with him.... Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats’” (CCC 1038). This anticipation of Our Lord’s second coming is an essential part of our faith. During the Mass after the consecration the people acclaim, “When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again.” St. Bernard spoke of the three arrivals of our Lord: his earthly life, his hidden presence within us, and, finally, his arrival at the end of time. Advent presages the first coming and the end of the liturgical year presages the final coming, and both prepare us for when he comes to us daily–silently, interiorly–but truly.
· When Will It Happen?: When will the Lord finally come? Are we close? These and other questions are common and understandable. However, the Church has persistently taught us that while Our Lord’s coming is imminent, “‘it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority.’ This eschatological coming could be accomplished at any moment, even if both it and the final trial that will precede it are ‘delayed’” (CCC 673). The Lord will return, but we do not know when. Therefore, we should not be perturbed upon hearing various prognostics that the end is near. We should not worry so much about the end of the world, but rather prepare ourselves daily for a holy life and a peaceful death.
· Losing Life to Preserve It: ‘Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it.” Our Lord is inviting us to realize that the things of this world are passing and that only he remains. If we seek to save our lives by merely chasing the pleasures of this life, we risk losing out on Christ himself, the pearl of great price for which we should gladly sell all the rest (Matthew 13:45-46). Rooted in a profound and trusting friendship with Christ, we will fear neither death nor the end of the world. Then, with St. Paul, we too will proclaim: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If it is to be life in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet… My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Philippians 1:21-23).
Conversing with Christ: Jesus, you come to your Church and to me in countless ways. I encounter you in Scripture, the Eucharist, Confession, prayer, and ultimately in all my daily experiences—both pleasant and challenging. Help me to see things as you see them, to value them as you value them. Give me the light and the strength to fulfill your will in all things—both now and at the end of my life.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will say a prayer for the dying.
Reflection:
As we near the end of the Liturgical year, the Liturgy focuses on the essential things - to follow the Lord, as the responsorial psalm says. The Epistle stresses the new commandment: Let us love one another. This is love: to walk according to His Commandments, and this is His Commandment: that we walk in love as we have learned. The emphasis is on following the law of the Lord.
In the Gospel, the Lord's basic message is that when the Son of Man comes, everything stops, and we had all better be ready. He recalls the time of Noah, when everything seemed normal until the day that Noah entered the Ark and they all died. Also, the Lord reminds us all that even Lot's wife, who was already headed to safety, should not have tried to look back and hold on to the past. Lastly, the Lord emphasizes that whoever tries to save his life shall lose it, and whoever gives his life will be born again. Whoever gives his life for Jesus will be born again. Thus there seem to be two special words for today: COMMANDMENT OF LOVE and FOLLOWING THIS COMMANDMENT. These are the essential things that will carry us to the next life, to rebirth, to God's Presence. Let us all pray for each other to learn the Commandment of Love and to Follow it steadfastly.
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