Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
At our parish staff meetings, we always begin by reading the gospel reading for the upcoming week and sharing our thoughts about the passage. Last week read the gospel reading that was just read for us. My instinctive reaction was fatigue. I said to everybody in the room, “I don’t want to deal with it!” I did not want to hear more about wars and insurrections, death and destruction. There was a lot of silence in the room that day. The reflection time ended rather quickly.
It’s not that I do not understand the significance of apocalyptic readings. As we reach the end of the liturgical and calendar year, the liturgical readings lead us to reflect on reality of the end. Whether we like it or not, someday, either on a personal or cosmic scale, we will have to face our end. It will not matter whether we are fatigued or not. When it does happen, scripture says to us today, “By your perseverance you will secure your lives” (Lk 21:19).
“By your perseverance you will secure your lives!” I have chosen to reflect on perseverance. Here are my three points for today.
1. Context of Apocalyptic Readings. Let me first provide the context of the readings. Almost always, the context of apocalyptic readings is either persecution or largescale rampant religious infidelities. It is the latter when it comes to our first reading from the book of Malachi. The name Malachi is not a proper name. Malachi means “my messenger.” The real author of the book is anonymous because of his trenchant criticism of the abuses and religious indifference in the community. On the other hand, in light of the infidelities, Malachi’s apocalyptic prophecy included a message of hope. He says, “Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven… But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays” (Mal 3:19-20). The context of the gospel reading, on the other hand, is external persecution. The Gospel of Luke was written very close to the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. For the people who lived in those days, it was as if it was the apocalypse. There was also the Christian persecution. Many Christians were crucified or thrown to the beasts. Yet, even in these gruesome and fearful days were not without a ray of hope. Jesus says, “Not a hair on your head will be destroyed” (Lk 21:18). At our staff meeting, I failed to read into the hope that is integral to apocalyptic literature. Perseverance is impossible if we lose sight of the hope that God offers.
2. “By Your Perseverance!” Perseverance is defined as, “persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.” In other words, in the secular context, perseverance means “not giving up.” In the context of today’s scripture readings, perseverance is not as much “not giving up,” as it is “not giving in.” Moreover, it is not a “not giving in” for its own sake, but because we always keep sight on the undying hope we carry in our soul. Let us look at Jesus for a moment. Jesus, like Malachi, sought a religious and spiritual renewal in the nation. He sought this renewal when his nation was under oppressive occupation. Jesus endured persecution both from within the nation and from outside the nation. Yet, he persevered. It was not about “not giving up!” It was about “not giving in!” He did not give into discouragement. He did not give into faithlessness. He did not give into despair. He continued to believe in the mission his Father entrusted to him. He continued to seek the Kingdom. He continued to encourage and build his disciples. He continued to give hope to people. He never compromised his integrity. He never stopped loving. Most of all, he never stopped doing good. Till his very last breath, he did not give in. Jesus persevered. By his perseverance, he secured not only his life, but secured it for all of humanity.
3. Three steps to Perseverance. There are three ways to build perseverance.
a) Prayer. We often find Jesus pulling himself away from the crowds and his disciples to pray. His prayer kept him plugged-in to his Father. In his darkest moment, he called upon his Father. Intimacy with God is critical to a life of perseverance.
b) Destiny and Origin. Jesus often spoke about where he came from and where he was going. He always kept his origin and destiny in view. Even in his most vulnerable moment his cry was, “Father into your hands….” Especially when we are vulnerable, we must remember our origin and our destiny. Especially when darkness surrounds us, we remember that God is our origin and God is our destiny. As Jesus reminds us today, “Every hair on our head is accounted for.”
c) Love and Doing Good. Both the above two steps are internal dispositions. These internal dispositions need external actions to keep fire burning. There are two things Jesus never stopped even in the critical moments of his life – loving others and doing good. From the cross he forgave his murderers. Even as he hung on the cross, he made way for a crucified criminal to enter paradise. The best way to persevere, to never give in, is to never stop doing good in genuine love.
If we put into practice these three things, we will never run out of the hope that gives us the perseverance to secure our lives.
The God, who is our hope, is here on the altar with us. Let us draw close to him. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph