Memorial of Saint Cecilia, virgin and martyr
(Revelation 14:14-19; Luke 21:5-11)
Today’s passage from the Book of Revelation describes the
judgment at the end of time. It is
depicted as a double harvest. The first,
performed by “รค son of man” who is probably Christ, cuts and gathers good fruit,
which is to say, the righteous of the earth.
The second harvest cuts down the grapes that are associated with the
ungodly. They will be crushed, and their
remains will be burned.
The harshness of the imagery need not be taken as a completely
negative judgment on the whole reality.
Not all people involved in evil are fully responsible for their
actions. Yet a verdict of guilty for
some should not be dismissed as outmoded.
Even though Jesus continually warns of judgment in the gospels, people
knowingly persist in doing evil.
The scene is intended to comfort those who try to live
moral lives. Equally, it is meant to
cast fear into those who do what they know to be wrong. In the end we cannot escape judgment. It is as inevitable as the setting of the
sun.
