Dear Friends,
Each year, the readings of November and the First Sunday of Advent are hard. They are about the end-times and point to the unwillingness of people to stay the course that leads to fullness of life.
Malachi is railing against the proud and the evildoers. They have no life-embracing vision upon which to build their lives. But God says to the faithful “for you, there will arise the sun of justice.” (Mal.3,20a)
The people whom Paul addresses in the letter to the Corinthians believed that since Jesus’ second coming was imminent, they no longer needed to carry their share of the workload in society. Paul condemned this attitude as unworthy of Christ’s followers. He urged them to participate in shaping life.
In the Gospel, Jesus finds people admiring the temple instead of doing the work of justice and mercy the Temple required. Echoing Malachi, Jesus bids them to persevere.
Throughout history, the end-time experiences have inspired either panic or lethargy. Yet there is a third way to respond to dire times. That third way is to trust God.
The end-times enter our lives in all sorts of ways. In some way, the war in Ukraine represents the end times. So did 9/11. When our jobs are phased out or relationships fall apart, when the illness and death of our loved ones threaten to swamp us, today’s Gospel says:
Don’t stray. Don’t panic. Give witness to the faith that is in you. Endure even as you trust Christ to be with you. I will be with you to give you the strength you need. “I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking so that your adversaries will be powerless to resist or dispute.” (Luke21.17)
Surrounded by supportive family and friends, bolstered by the promise of God’s fidelity, we can weather the storm and even during our own chaos, feel the sun of justice with its healing rays that Malachi writes about.
People are not always surrounded by loved ones in times of distress. Some of us apparently or truly stand alone, cut off from the people we love and depend on the most – shut off from them by our own choice or by the choice of others. People are alone for all sorts of reasons. But in truth, God is with the bereft as well.
The difference between despair and hope during personal or societal calamity is in the measure of our openness to the stunning truth that we are
surrounded
held up
shielded
propelled forward
beckoned by a God who loves us.
When darkness of whatever kind sets in, our God will not abandon us, just as God did not abandon His only Son. God is here. Our God is a faithful God.
~Sister Joan Sobala
