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Our Lady of Victory
490 Charles Street
Gatineau, Québec
J8L 2K5
(819)986-3763
olv@videotron.ca
Mass: Sunday 9:00 AM
Thursday 10:00 AM |
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St. Malachy
3889 Route 315
Mayo, Québec
J8L 3Z8
(819)986-3763
olv@videotron.ca
Mass: Saturday 7:00 PM
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Fr. Albanus’ Reflections on the Sunday Liturgy |
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| Waiting for the End with Courage and Hope |
As we approach the end of the Church’s Liturgical Year, the liturgy naturally offers us an opportunity to reflect on the Last Things – Death, Judgement, Heaven and Hell. Today’s readings therefore assure us that God will be with us all the days of our lives and the Holy Spirit is ever present in our midst to guide, protect and strengthen us. This should be a source of courage to us as we face the uncertainty concerning the end time “when Christ will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.” The first reading is from the Book of the prophet Daniel, a book that was originally written to comfort and give hope to the Jewish people persecuted by a cruel pagan king, Antiochus. The king wanted to wipe out all semblance of religion. The author promises that Michael will arise to defend the holy people. He also admits that all those who were killed because they refused to betray their faith will awaken to share the joy of the kingdom of God and the wise who defended justice will shine as brightly as the heavens – the first assertion of resurrection in the Bible. The words of hope here were not written only for the Jews of the time; they are also valid for all today living under similar conditions.
In the second reading, the author challenges us to look to the future with hope and calmness. Why? Jesus, the mediator who sits at the right hand of God, has secured the forgiveness of our sins and our sanctification through His sacrifice on the cross. The message of hope is echoed too in the Gospel. St. Mark offers us hope as he did the early Christians persecuted by the Roman Emperor Nero. He reminded the early Christians of Jesus’ words about His glorious return to earth with great power and glory as judge to gather and reward His elect. Accordingly, we should not worry about the date of the end of the world; it is more important to know how to live now, in this world. Jesus asks us to spread optimism around us. The difficulties and dramas of life should not be considered as signs of death but, like the woman’s labor, as announcing the birth of new life. Despite the hate, suffering and tears, our communities should be signs of hope and source of love, joy and peace. Like Daniel in the first reading, Mark continues to remind us that God will ensure that the righteous survive the ordeal and find a place with Him.
Through the image of the fig tree, Jesus warns us that we must be ever prepared to give account of our lives when He comes in glory as the Judge because we cannot know “either the day or the hour” of His second coming. Only the Father, and nobody else, knows the time and the hour of the final establishment of the Kingdom of God but there are evident signs that show the time is near. We should therefore keep alert like the farmer who knows how to interpret the signs that mark the coming of the new season. Today, many of us suffer many failures, injustices, disappointments in our lives; friends betray us, children disappoint us, relatives always engage in disagreements with us. But Jesus invites us not to be discouraged. Even during the darkest moments, we will be able to see the signs of the kingdom that is coming closer. As they face both joys and sorrows in their lives, Christians should raise their heads and see in every event the sign that the Son of man is near, while the unbelievers lower their sight, look down to the ground and despair. Instead of worrying about the end time events, we are asked to live every day of our lives loving God living in others, by our committed service to them with sacrificial agape love. Based on our ways of life, are we convinced that at the end good, not evil, will prevail? Happy Sunday!
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