Thursday of the Thirty-third Week of Ordinary Time
(Revelation 5:1-10; Luke 19:41-44)
The Marriage Encounter weekend includes two sessions entitled “Marriage in the Plan of the World” and “Marriage in the Plan of God.” The first describes marriage as a contract made to enhance the self until the relationship might interfere with individual fulfillment. The second shows marriage as a covenant in which the couple makes a permanent commitment to give of themselves for the good of each other. Since following the world’s ways only leads to disillusionment, people need to know the plan of God.
The scroll which the Almighty holds in His hand in the reading from Revelation is similarly His plan for the world. It likewise needs to be revealed so that people may attain happiness. But its revelation requires credibility that comes from giving perfect witness. Only the Almighty’s Son can do this, the one we know as Jesus Christ and pictured here as the “lamb of God.” Christ’s words, reinforced by his deeds, show us the primacy of self-sacrificing love. Without this revelation, life turns hollow or, at best, sours when evil raises hard questions.
Everyday we join the rest of creation in the hymn of praise to the lamb for undergoing the trial that reveals God’s plan. Now we can bear with injury knowing that God has something wonderful in mind for those who practice true love.
