November 18^th 2018. Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Mark 13,24-32

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL: Mark 13,24-32

Jesus said to his disciples: "In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
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, and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.
"Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
"But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel passage speaks of cataclysmic events. What are we to make of these dramatic prophecies? Are these referring to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD? Or are they referring to the end of time? Do they speak to us today as we read this Gospel? The events can be interpreted as referring to the natural cataclysms that occurred at the time of the passion of Jesus. And they can also be taken as referring to the tribulations that always precede genuine conversion to Christ in any age. On the fourth day of creation, the sun, moon and stars became the points of reference of the physical world. Jesus speaks about them coming to an end. If Christ is to come to us, then our own points of reference must come to an end. Our own intelligence, our own wisdom, the things that “illuminate” our way, must all collapse. The pantheon of our personal idolatries must be shattered. It is only then that Jesus will be able to come to us and find what is authentic in our hearts. Tribulation becomes a blessed thing if we allow ourselves to be found by the Lord. It becomes a moment of opportunity if it causes our spurious foundations to collapse, leading us to make the Father our principal point of reference.

Is this Gospel speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem? Or of the end of the world? What relevance can it have for us today?

On this thirty-third Sunday of ordinary time, the second last of the liturgical year, the Gospel prompts us to lift our gaze towards the final things, the end of time. The text, from the thirteenth chapter of St Mark’s Gospel has references that seem ambiguous in nature. Jesus’ discourse ranges from the destruction of Jerusalem (a historical event that would occur in the year 70 AD) to events that seem to be occurring at the end of time. Many scholars believe that the Gospel was written before the destruction of Jerusalem and contains a genuine prophecy of Christ regarding that event. Others believe that the prophecy is mostly directed to the end times. But the difficulty here is that the Lord says at the end of his discourse: “This generation shall not pass away until all these things have taken place”. So there are three possible references here: to the life experience of the listeners of Jesus’ discourse, to the destruction of Jerusalem a few decades later, and to the events at the end of the world. Does this mean that this Gospel has little relevance for us who listen to the passage today?

The events recounted by Jesus refer to the cataclysmic events that occurred at his passion and death

The passage begins: “In those days after that tribulation the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” This is a reference to the Passion of Christ. At the time that Jesus dies there is a solar eclipse and an earthquake. Nature registers the cataclysmic nature of the events that are happening. "And then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds' with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds . .” This refers to events after the resurrection, when the Lord sends his angels to evangelise, to spread the good news about the resurrection of Jesus. So what we have here is a marvellous interpretation of the events of the Passion as recounted by Jesus.

The events can also be interpreted as referring to any time when the major points of reference collapse in our lives and we find ourselves turning to Christ, the ultimate point of reference

But this reading of events is also relevant to us who read the Gospel today. How so? What is the tribulation that causes the sun to be darkened, the moon to lose his light and the stars fall from the sky? This refers to the reversal of the fourth day of creation. On the fourth day, the Lord placed the celestial lights in the sky, the sun to rule the day, and the moon and stars to rule the night. These celestial objects are the reference points for the passing of time. When they are gone, we have no reference points and no light. At this moment, when there is neither sun nor moon, “they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds”. The destruction of Jerusalem represents the end of an epoch, a reference point in time, and from that moment Christianity expands over the earth. Jesus asks us to learn a lesson from the fig tree: “When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near.” In the same way, when the points of reference are falling, when the powers are collapsing, then the Son of Man is coming. Just as nature has its signs, so too does the existential life and the spiritual life.

If we are to turn to Christ, then the pantheon of our personal idolatries must collapse. At this moment, we are capable of recognising the fact that he is coming and searching for what is authentic in my heart.

In reality this was the story of every conversion in the early Church. In order to arrive at the faith, it is necessary that the “sun” be obscured. Our wisdom must be set in crisis, the things that once “lit” our way must be dimmed, our pantheon of gods must collapse. Such a crisis becomes the moment for radical change. When we no longer have the answers, when we don’t know how to go on, these are the moments that are ripe with possibilities. No one can arrive at faith in Christ unless his own wisdom, his own points of reference are destabilised. This holy “shaking” is something that we all need. Thus the Gospel refers to the Passion of Christ, to the end of times, and to the end of the Jewish principal points of reference. The Temple, in fact, continued to be a point of reference for the disciples after the resurrection. They continued to frequent the Temple for years afterwards. But the destruction of this edifice and the end of the liturgical life that it sustained became identified with something very significant. This tragedy, this disaster, this injustice, this oppression became the opportunity for a qualitative step forward. When the pantheon of our personal idolatries collapses, then we can be sure that the Son of Man is coming! He is searching for his elect. He is searching for what is authentic in our hearts.  These difficult times, these crises serve the purpose of leading us to personal growth. The Lord is searching for us through these traumatic moments in order to lead us away from our self-deceptions and give us his Holy Spirit. Tribulation becomes a blessed thing if we welcome it, if we allow ourselves to be found by the Lord. He sends his angels to gather his chosen ones, from the ends of the earth, wherever they may be! We can return to Christ once our own existence has been shaken or destabilised in this way. It is important to experience these moments of annihilation. It is important to recognize that our own lives cannot be sustained by points of reference that are meaningless. Our lives, rather, must be sustained by the Father, in the sure hope of his providence.