Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
(Daniel 7:2-14; Luke
21:29-33)
The liturgical years ends
on a high note. Today’s first reading
shows God’s victory over evil and the reign of “the son of man” over the
earth. The four defeated beasts are the
superpowers of different stages in the last millennium before Christ. They all emerged from the sea, a symbol of
evil.
The two-winged lion
represents Babylon with its two ferocious kings Nebuchadnezzar and
Belshazzar. The bear symbolizes the
Median empire, a rival of Babylon. The leopard
signifies the Persian empire which rapidly became a regional powerhouse. The terrifying beast at the end is the wicked
Seleucid dynasty that attempted to snuff out Jewish religious practice.
Jews and Christians
have suffered many persecutions over the centuries. They still exist as confessing peoples. Their enemies, on the contrary, are but bitter
memories, for the most part at least. We
should thank God for deliverance from oppressors. We also need to ask His help in combatting
current threats to religious freedom.
