Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Revelation 15:1-4; Luke 21:12-19)

The gospel today anticipates the persecution of Christians by Jews described in the Acts of the Apostles.  It started before the Roman destruction of the Temple.  Herod had James, the brother of John, killed.  He arrested Peter, who was subsequently rescued by an angel.  And Paul will exemplify Christians giving testimony under Jewish persecution.

The statement that “not a hair on your head will be destroyed” originates in Jesus assuring his disciples that the Father has counted the hairs on their heads.  When he says here that some of them will be put to death, he seems to be contradicting himself.  But he means that with the resurrection of the dead, their bodies will be wholly reconstructed.

We must remember that Christian persecution has not ended.  Even today some Christians are being killed.  The persecution may also be subtle.  Some despise Christians for our opposition for abortion or for simply belief in the spiritual realm.  We may be called to testify about why we continue to believe.  As Jesus says there is no need for preparation.  We could simply state what know from instruction that resides at the bottom of our hearts.

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Daniel 5:1-6.13-14.16-17.23-28; Luke 21:12-19)

In today’s gospel Jesus warns his followers that some of them will be put to death before he comes again.  Short of that, they will be betrayed and persecuted.  Yet, he says, they are not to lose courage or give up.  He promises to assist them in their trials.

Jesus’ prediction has proved true until the present day.  Christians in different parts of the world are being harassed, injured, robbed, and even killed. Numbers are disputed.  Some say as many as 100,000 a year.  In any case persecutions are distressingly many.

As most of us live in areas without systematic persecution, we tend to think that Christians everywhere live in peace.  After all, Christ taught us to love, not to hate our neighbors.  However, whether it be from others’ religious zealotry or in reaction to our failure to follow Christ, Christians are suffering violence today.  Our response must not be to prepare ourselves for battle.  Rather, as much as possible, we are to give testimony to Jesus’ own long-suffering, peace, and love.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Revelation 15:1-4; Luke 21:12-19)

Both readings today proclaim the ultimate triumph of Christians who persevere.  The first reading pictures Christian soldiers making music over the ash heap of their impious foes.  The gospel passage ends with Jesus’ assuring those who remain faithful that their lives will be secured.  Such an overwhelming victory is hardly what we experience in everyday life.

A news report today focused on the war in Yemen.  Unknown to many Americans, the war is taking a costly toll on children.  According to the report, 85,000 children under five years of age have died of starvation and related disease in the middle eastern country.  Such evil occurs all too frequently in our world.  Yet we run across goodness as well all the time.  Groups of Catholics and oth4r people of good will are accompanying immigrants to hearings to assure their fair treatment. We seem to endlessly live in that wheat field where the enemy has sown weeds.  We may count on good and bad coexisting until the end of time.

This dualism reflects the struggle going on in our hearts.  We feel the urge to act sinfully.  Perhaps we want to tell an egregious lie to spite someone we don’t like.  Or maybe we dream of abandoning our families for a more adventurous lifestyle.  With God’s reliable grace we will be able to overcome these wicked impulses.  More significantly, with the same we will be able to love God and neighbor continuously.  This love will assure us a place in the symphony making music over our sins.

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Daniel 5:1-6.13-14.16-17.23-28; Luke 21:12-19)

Recently Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C., the president of the University of Notre Dame, publicly defended one of the university’s faculty members from an unjust accusation.  When a law professor of the university was nominated for a federal judgeship, a number of senators attacked her as living by dogma.  What bothered the senators was the professor’s conviction that abortion is wrong.  Fr. Jenkins wrote an open letter saying that he too lived by dogma as do millions of other Americans.

The implied criticism of Church dogma reflects today’s gospel.  Jesus tells his disciples that they will be persecuted because they preach him.  The persecution begins soon after his death and resurrection as attested in the Acts of the Apostles.  It waxed and waned for three hundred reaching a climax just before the Emperor Constantine granted Christians religious freedom.  And it has never really ended until the present day.  Christians themselves have sometimes provoked harsh reactions, but more often people resent the Church for preaching the justice of God’s kingdom.

We should not be surprised if we hear snide remarks made against us.  A generation ago Catholics were supposedly undermining the common good by having large families.  More recently we are ridiculed for believing in what the sophisticated call fantasies such as the resurrection of the dead.  As Jesus advises, we should not become too outraged.  Rather our stance should always be like his cool defense of what we believe.  It does not rest on sophisticated argument but on the gospel we receive from him.

Wednesday, November 26, 2012

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Revelation 15:1-4; Psalm 98; Luke 21:12-19)

“Non sequitur” is a Latin expression that means a conclusion does not follow from the evidence given. Listening to Jesus in the gospel, one might think that “not a hair on your head will be destroyed” is a non sequitur. From all that Jesus warns about the seizure and persecution of his followers, it sounds contradictory to predict that their coiffures will not be upset. But Jesus has something else in mind when he gives this assurance. He means that faithful Christians will receive eternal life when they risk giving testimony to him in the world.

The passage indicates the difference between optimism and hope. It is sometimes thought that the two words carry more or less the same meaning, but this is not the case. Optimism is an attitude that expects every situation to turn out rosy. It overlooks the possibility of any harm with a sunny disposition. Hope, in contrast, recognizes suffering as part of the human condition but sees deliverance, in the long run at least, coming from the person in whom hope is placed. Hope is not as self-reliant as optimism, nor is it so sure that relief is around the corner.

In facing trials – whether persecution for the faith, debilitating sickness, or other threats to well-being – we hope in Jesus. He promises to deliver us from harm when we stand by him. The surety of deliverance does not preclude the possibility of suffering, but our confidence in Jesus is ratified by his resurrection from the tomb.

Homilette for Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Daniel 5:1-6.13-14.16-17.23-28; Luke 21:12-19)

In his autobiography Justice Clarence Thomas writes of the ordeal he underwent after being nominated to the Supreme Court. He says that a coalition of self-interest groups conspired with a group of senators to undermine his confirmation. Throughout the struggle Senator John Danforth, Thomas’ mentor and an ordained Episcopalian priest, counseled him to allow the “Holy Ghost” speak through him. Much like Jesus advises his followers to do in the gospel today, Thomas was to trust in the Lord to see him through the lies and calumnies that his detractors were raising.

For awhile Catholics in the United States did not have to worry about defending themselves against persecution. Earlier in the nation’s history a virulent anti-Catholicism festered in America. The Ku Klux Klan, for example, singled out Catholics as well as Blacks and Jews as America’s enemies. Then, for roughly the middle of the last century, a genuine toleration of religion thrived through most of the country. Everyone was encouraged to “attend the church or synagogue of your choice.” More recently, however, Christian beliefs and practices have been under severe scrutiny. Many, especially the sophisticated, cannot accept as genuine those who profess a religion which forbids extramarital sex and values human life as inviolable from conception to natural death. We are likely to have to defend our faith again if not our own lives.

As Jesus would tell us, the current secular atmosphere does not call us to prepare speeches in defense of our faith. But we should pray to God for enlightenment and also take advantages of opportunities to learn what the Church teaches. Fortunately, excellent resources are at hand. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, for example, is available on the Internet. We need not worry that our faith is unreasonable much less ridiculous. The truth is just the opposite. Although faith is a divine gift, it does not oppose rationality. Indeed, for twenty centuries Christian intellectuals have contributed immensely to world thought.

Homilette for Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

(Revelation 15:1-4; Psalm 98; Luke 21:12-19)

“Non sequitur” is a Latin expression that means a conclusion does not follow from the evidence given. Listening to Jesus in the gospel, we might think that “not a hair on your head will be destroyed” is a non sequitur. From all that Jesus warns about the seizure and persecution of his followers, it sounds contradictory to predict that their coiffures will not be upset. But Jesus has something else in mind when he gives this assurance. He means that faithful Christians will receive an eternal reward life when they risk giving testimony to him in the world.

The passage helps us understand the crucial difference between optimism and hope. We may think that the two words carry more or less the same meaning, but this is not the case. Optimism is an attitude that expects every situation to turn out well. It overlooks the possibility of harm with a sunny disposition. Hope, in contrast, recognizes suffering as part of human reality but sees deliverance in the long run at least coming from the one in which the person hopes. Hope is not as self-reliant as optimism, nor is it so sure that relief is around the corner.

In facing trials – whether persecution for the faith, debilitating sickness, or other threats to well-being – Christians hope in Jesus. He promises to deliver us from harm when we stand by him. The surety of deliverance does not preclude the real possibility of suffering, but our confidence in Jesus is ratified by his resurrection from the tomb.

Homilette for Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Wednesday, XXXIV Week of Ordinary Time

(Luke 21:12-19)

“Non sequitur” is a Latin expression that means a conclusion does not follow from the evidence given. Listening carefully to Jesus in the gospel, we might think that “not a hair on your head will be destroyed” is a non sequitur from all that he says before about betrayal, trial, and execution. But Jesus has something else in mind when he adds the assurance about one’s coiffure. He means that we will have an eternal, glorified life when we give testimony to him in the world.

The passage helps us understand the crucial difference between optimism and hope. We may think that the two words are synonyms; that is, that they carry the same meaning. Although optimism and hope share a similar confidence in a positive outcome, the two words are distinct. Optimism is an attitude expecting every situation to turn out well. It overlooks the possibility of harm to find a solution to every problem and a remedy for every threat, largely because of the person’s upbeat disposition. Hope, in contrast, admits the possibility of suffering for awhile but sees deliverance, in the long run at least, outside the self in the person or thing in which the person hopes. Hope is not as self-reliant as optimism, nor is it so sure that relief is just an instant away.

In facing trials – whether persecution for the faith, debilitating sickness, or other threat to well-being – Christians hope in Jesus Christ. He promises to deliver us when we cling to him. The deliverance may not exclude our suffering, but in the end he will save us. Jesus’ promise is confirmed by his resurrection from the tomb.