By Colleen O’Sullivan
As the visions during the night continued, I
saw One like a son of man coming, on the clouds of heaven; When he reached the
Ancient One and was presented before him, He received dominion, glory, and
kingship; nations and people of every language serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that
shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed. (Daniel 7:13-14)
Jesus told his disciples a parable. “Consider the fig tree and all the other
trees. When their buds burst open, you
see for yourselves and know that summer is now near; in the same way, when you
see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near.” (Luke 21:29-31)
Piety
For our salvation is nearer now than when we first
believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the
works of darkness and put on the armor of light. (Romans 13:11)
Study
“My husband wants to go out to eat and to a movie
tomorrow night, but I don’t know...What if something happens?”
“My daughter is expecting her first child, but what
kind of world is this to bring a child into?”
“Do you think these are the end times?”
These are just a sampling of the comments I’ve
heard from friends and acquaintances in the last week or so. In the midst of turbulent
times, when we feel threatened and afraid, our instinct is to circle the wagons
or close the shutters and hunker down.
Daniel must have been frightened by the ferocity of
the beasts in the vision he recounts in the beginning of today’s first reading.
The beasts represented the kingdoms which had threatened and overcome God’s
people. Maybe they were his equivalent of the bloody images we’ve seen from
Paris and Mali, or the other unspeakable acts perpetrated by ISIS that have
been in the news over the past year. Just as the forces of chaos and disruption
seem at their strongest, Daniel has another vision. He sees God on his throne
in heaven and he sees the son of man presented to the Ancient One. This is the
one we know as Christ our King. His reign shall be from everlasting to
everlasting. Nothing will prevail
against him. This King was born into our world in the shadow of the Roman
Empire. From the moment the angels announced the good news and shepherds came
to adore their Savior, Jesus’ life was threatened. He was persecuted, and
ultimately seized and put to death. But
he rose from the dead and reigns eternal in heaven. His power is mightier than any
evil Daniel, you or I could ever have to contend with.
In the Gospel reading, the disciples are feeling
uneasy. Jesus has talked about the coming destruction of the Temple. He
mentions the likelihood of persecution before the end of time as we know it. The
disciples want to know how they will know when the end is imminent. In today’s
verses, Jesus points to a fig tree and says they know that when the buds open,
summer is upon them. In the same manner, the Lord tells them, they will know
when he is about to return in glory. There will be no mistaking the signs. Don’t
worry about it.
This is the last chapter in Luke’s Gospel before
Jesus’ final days in Jerusalem. He must have been full of fear and foreboding
himself. Yet several verses after our reading ends, Luke says Jesus went on
teaching day after day in the Temple. In the evenings, he would retire to the
Mount of Olives to seek his Father in prayer. Perhaps the way Jesus conducts
himself is the most important sign he gives us. He’s about to lose his life,
but he doesn’t go into hiding. He seeks the counsel of God.
When the works of darkness weigh us down, look
around for signs of God’s presence. Juxtaposed with the images of broken glass,
wounded people being transported to hospitals, and bodies being removed from
scenes of carnage were accounts of Parisians opening their doors to strangers
in need of safety and shelter, brave souls carrying bleeding men and women to
ambulances and taxis so that they could get to emergency rooms, and a man
explaining to his young, very frightened son that the flower memorials were
there to fight against the guns, that he shouldn’t be afraid. God is always at
work. We simply have to look for the Light.
Action
Yesterday,
we gathered with family and friends to give thanks for our blessings. Why not
continue the thanks-giving today by looking around and noting all the places
and people in whom we see the Lord’s presence. Most of what we find will never
be broadcast on the news, but the assurance of God’s presence in our midst is
the best news of all.
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