Father Gabriel's Reflection
33rd Sunday, Year B
Dear Beloved Family of St. Anselm,
Jesus is with His apostles at the Mount of Olives in today's Gospel. From this vantage point, they look across the Kidron Valley to the magnificent Temple, and the apostles marvel at its glorious beauty. Jesus challenges their admiration with the admonition that all the glory they see is soon to be destroyed without one stone left on another (Mk 13:2). Shocked, the apostles ask Him when this will happen and what signs will precede this awful event. Jesus teaches them that all the ancient Temple rituals merely pointed to Him since He is ushering in a New Covenant. Sure enough, 40 years later (in A.D. 70), the Roman Army, after having surrounded Jerusalem for a period of 3 ½ months, destroyed the Temple and all of Jerusalem. As Jesus prophesied, not one stone was left on another. In 2000 years, despite several attempts, the Jewish Temple has never been rebuilt. This is the historical place and context of today's Gospel. What does this mean for us, some 2000 years later?
1. The Passing Nature of the World – Toward the end of the Gospel passage, the Lord says, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not. Note the definitiveness of this statement: this world will pass away. The might of the powerful, the influence of the popular, the glory of all the glitterati—all of this will pass away. Painful though this perspective may be, it is essential and healing. It brings with it a strong kind of serenity. Like every truth, the truth that all things are passing sets us free.
2. The Permanence of God’s Word – The Lord tells us that His words will not disappear. Although the world will pass away, the truth and the Word of God will remain forever. Heresies and all sorts of foolishness have come and gone, and here we still are proclaiming the eternal Gospel, the Word of the Lord. The Church has seen the Roman Empire, the Carolingian Empire, the British Empire, the Soviet Socialist Republic, and many others rise to power only to fade and disappear.
3. What Are Our Priorities? –The Lord says, in effect, that we know very well what our priority should be, but we willfully ignore it. Learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender, and sprouts leaves, you know summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that he is near, at the gates (Matt 24:32-33). Too quickly, though, we dream on and do not follow the prescribed priority. Wealth, fame, and glory are all uncertain and passing, but death, judgment, and Heaven are inevitable. However, we console ourselves to think otherwise. If we expend as much effort looking for a time and place to pray as we do search for a restaurant for dinner, we would be spiritual heavyweights rather than physically overweight. We find time for everything else, why not for prayer, Scripture, fellowship in the Church, and the sacraments? What are my priorities?
Amen.