November 14, 2022
My dear family of God,
The readings for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C invite us to reflect on our call as Christians to witness in the face of trials and tribulations. It is also a reminder to us of the end times and the necessary preparations we are to make towards the day of the Lord.
In the first reading we are told that the day of the Lord is coming. The day of the Lord will spell doom for the wicked and unfaithful, but for the righteous and the faithful, the day of the Lord will bring vindication. The prophet Malachi says “Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the LORD of hosts. But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.”
In the Gospel, Jesus speaks about the end times and encourages his disciples to persevere in the face of tribulations. When some people had commented on the beauty of the temple, Jesus said to them “All that you see here, the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down." They then asked Him when this event will take place and what signs will precede it. They wanted to know when the end time will come.
Jesus uses the opportunity to warn them against false prophets who will come in His name claiming to be the Christ. He also makes mention of wars and insurrections, powerful earthquakes, famines and plagues, and some cataclysmic events that will happen in the skies. These things, however, are not meant to scare the disciples of Christ. Jesus says, “Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony.”
Giving testimony of our faith in Christ will not be an easy task. It will bring trials and opposition from those not on the side of the truth. Jesus, however, assures us that by our perseverance we will be saved. Let us therefore hold fast to the profession of our faith without wavering for the one who has promised us our salvation is a faithful God.
Do have a grace-filled week. Shalom!
Fr. James Ahenkora
