December 31 2024 - The Eternal Word accompanies us through time

 December 31 is a retrospective day for many people.  A day to look back on the experiences of the year: to recall God’s blessings and interventions in our lives and to give thanks and to look forward that next year be better than the last.  

Pope Benedict XVI wrote: “It is our duty, as well as a need of our hearts, to praise and thank the Eternal One who accompanies us through time, never abandoning us, and who always watches over humanity with the fidelity of his merciful love.”

How has the Lord accompanied us through 2024?  Three hundred sixty-five days this year, Jesus has offered himself to us—in his teaching, in his Sacraments, most especially in the Eucharist.  365 days he has offered to forgive our sins, and invited us to make a new beginning in the life of grace—turning to him for strength in times of temptation, turning to him for guidance in times of confusion. In the darkest moments of 2024, he was there. Did we turn to him? Did we turn to the Christ, or did we turn to the voices and empty promises, of those St. John calls in our first reading, the anti-christs.

“Many anti-christs have appeared” John writes. What constitutes an anti-Christ? Any person, any philosophy, any institution who stands in opposition of Christ and the good news he offers, would be considered an anti-Christ. 

And just as many anti-Christs appeared in the early Church, anti-Christs are in abundance in the modern day. And the modern anti-christs continue to oppose Christ by swaying us to be selfish, to ignore God’s commandments, to hold on to grudges, to snub the poor. They seek to convince Christians to leave the Church, to dismiss godly wisdom, and persuade non-believers to look elsewhere for salvation. But they only offer the short term salvation of instant gratification, rather than authentic salvation that endures unto eternity. 

As we conclude one year and enter another, we do well to reflect upon and give thanks for the blessings of the year. But we also pray to God to gird us to continue the spiritual battle ahead and our Gospel mandate. 

Whatever may happen in 2025, Christ’s “light shines in the darkness; the darkness has not (and will not) overcome it.” 

Again, let us praise and thank the Eternal One who accompanies in time, and let us face today and tomorrow with the grace and truth he brings, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Mindful of God’s faithfulness, let us offer our prayers and petitions with grateful hearts:

For the Church That all believers may enter the new year with renewed faith, bearing witness to Christ’s light in a world often darkened by selfishness and division. 

For those who lead and govern, that in 2025, government and civic leaders may be guided by the wisdom of God, promoting policies that uphold the dignity of every human person and protect the common good.

For all who have experienced hardship this past year That those who have suffered loss, disappointment, or confusion may find in Christ the healing and hope

For protection from modern “anti-christs”, that the Lord may strengthen us to recognize and resist voices that entice us toward selfishness, grudges, and neglect of the vulnerable, so we may remain steadfast in the truth of the Gospel.

In thanksgiving for God’s blessings, that our hearts may overflow with gratitude for the ways the Lord has accompanied us, forgiven our sins, and offered His grace throughout this past year.

For those struggling with illness, addiction or harmful habits: That they may find healing, support, and freedom in God’s grace, and discover the lasting peace Christ desires for them.

That those who have gone before us in faith may rest in the eternal embrace of our Merciful Father.

Presider: Loving and eternal God, you have guided us through the days and seasons of this past year. Hear our prayers as we entrust to you all our joys, sorrows, and hopes for the year ahead. May your grace strengthen us in the truth of Christ, whose light shines forever. 

33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time 2021 - The end times

 We’ve come to the end times. The end of the calendar year isn’t too far away, and the end of the liturgical year has just two weeks left. As things are winding down our scripture readings return, as they do at this time every year, to the last things, the end times—death, judgment, heaven, hell, and eternity.

Our Lord’s teaching  on the end times in today’s Gospel passage, takes place during the last week of his life—holy week. He had entered Jerusalem for the last time on Palm Sunday, he went to the temple and taught there for the last time. And, after a busy day of teaching, contending with the Pharisees and Sadducees in the Temple, Jesus and his Apostles go to rest on the Mount of Olives across the Kidron Valley from Jerusalem.  

Fitting how, as his own earthly mission is drawing to a close—the end and culmination of his earthly mission—the Lord speaks about the end times. And as we just heard, the Lord describes some pretty frightening imagery: “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.”

This sort of language and imagery is nothing new in scripture. The Old Testament prophets use this sort of language quite often: how there are going to be some pretty traumatic cosmic events prior to the ushering in of God’s kingdom. Isaiah prophesies about the darkening of the sun and the stars, the earth trembling, green grass withering, and waters turning to blood. The prophet Joel speaks of the blood and smoke and fire that will signal the great and awesome day of tribulation. Zephaniah describes  wrath, trouble, distress, destruction, desolation, darkness, clouds and gloom. Jeremiah speaks of all of creation sort of unravelling preceding God’s great day. Daniel, as we heard in the first reading, takes up this language as well.

So, the Lord draws on the apocalyptic language of the prophets of old, to reaffirm that these cosmic events will proceed the end of the age. But this age ends, so that it might give way to a new one that will last forever. For he adds, “when you see these things happening, know that the Son of Man is near, at the gates.” 

Here the Lord describes a truth that we proclaim in our Creed every week regarding the Lord’s return. The second coming. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, we proclaim. Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. 

Great tribulations will proceed the Lord’s return. And the Catechism says, “Before Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers.” So the Lord offers this teaching, that we may not loose faith when the rafters of heaven shake. 

These tribulations are but the labor pains, as he says in the proceeding verses—Labor Pains of a new world, a new heaven and a new earth in which God will rule over creation in an eternal kingdom of peace.

And in a sense, every generation has to face its own tribulations, every individual in fact. There are events in our life, the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, even scandal in the church, that can shake our faith. 

In the lifetime of the apostles, they would see the Temple destroyed, Jerusalem sacked, and Christians put to death by the Roman government, each of them, would have to face serious personal trials, and so must we. 

The Catechism goes on to say that throughout her persecutions the Church will be tempted to believe the deception of the anti-Christ, that man can save himself, that we don’t need God, but that we find fulfillment when we put ourselves in the place of God. We see people in our modern culture more than ever before falling for this deception, that by sheer human will and ingenuity we can usher in our own era of peace, devoid of God. 

Every Christian generation, every individual, is to live as if the Lord’s return is imminent and to keep the faith when there are wars and earthquakes and plagues, and remain vigilant against the temptations of the anti-Christ.

 “Be watchful, you do not know the day or the hour, be prepared, it can come when you least expect it.”

Will the Lord return in our own lifetime? Perhaps. Nonetheless, we will all have to appear before him as judge at the end of our life, which might also come when we least expect it. So, we must be prepared, by repenting of and confessing our sins, receiving the flesh and blood of Christ as often as we can, and living lives of righteousness, as best we can.

To be watchful means three things:

First, it means making our personal relationship with God our highest priority through daily prayer, ongoing study of our faith, and frequent reception of the sacraments.

Second, it means sharing with others the news that Jesus has shared with us. If this Gospel teaches us anything it is that time is short. And we must make use of the time we’ve been given to bring souls to Christ. We are here today because someone cared for our souls and the souls of our family members who passed the faith on to us, and we must do the same.

Lastly, we must follow the Lord’s example in our daily lives. Jesus was honest, courageous, gentle, patient, forgiving, humble, pure, and faithful. And every single day, in all of our relationships with family, friends, and strangers, we are to imitate his goodness.

As we continue with this Mass, let’s thank our Lord for the time we’ve been given to fulfill our mandate and mission—to live with the end in mind by living wisely in the present for the glory of God and salvation of souls. 

December 31 2018 - Christ and Anti-Christs

December 31 is a retrospective day for many people.  A day to look back on the experiences of the year: to recall God’s blessings and interventions in our lives and to give thanks and to look forward that next year be better than the last. 

Pope Benedict XVI wrote: “It is our duty, as well as a need of our hearts, to praise and thank the Eternal One who accompanies us through time, never abandoning us, and who always watches over humanity with the fidelity of his merciful love.”

How has the Lord accompanied us through 2018, a difficult year for many people? Three hundred sixty-five days this year Jesus has offered himself to us—in his teaching, in his Sacraments, most especially in the Eucharist.  365 days he has offered to forgive our sins, and invited us to make a new beginning in the life of grace—turning to him for strength in times of temptation, turning to him for guidance in times of confusion. In the darkest moments of 2018, he was there. Did we turn to him? Did we turn to the Christ, or did we turn to the voices and empty promises, of those St. John calls in our first reading, the anti-christs.

“Many anti-christs have appeared” John writes. Each of us faced anti-christs in 2018, whether we know it or not. These were the voices that sought to deceive us, to follow them and depart from the way of Jesus. They tried to convince us to give up faith, give up hope, and give up charity and to despair of God's mercy for sinners. By their example, perhaps, they sought to sway us to hate our neighbor, ignore the commandments, deepen division in our family, and snub the poor. They’ve sewed seeds of error, caused scandal and weakened the communion of the church. They’ve led Christians to leave the Church and non-believers to look elsewhere for salvation. There were anti-christs in John’s day, there were anti-christs in 2018 and there will be anti-christs in 2019. God forgive us if we were anti-christs to anyone, and God preserve from being anti-Christs to anyone.

As we prepare to end one year and enter another, we look back, to reflect upon and give thanks for the blessings of the year, we gird ourselves to continue the spiritual battle ahead, and we look forward with hope and trust that the Lord Christ is stronger than all the anti-Christs, His “light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

Today is not a day for disappointment over how little we have achieved, but a day for thanks over what God has achieved, and joyful anticipation of what He desires to achieve through us, with us, and in us for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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We bring forth now our prayers of petitions.

For the conversion of all those who have turned their hearts from Christ, for those who have fallen into serious sin, for a strengthening of all of the faithful in virtue. And That God may bring the faithless to believe in His Son and increase the faith of those struggling to believe.

For Christians who are persecuted throughout the world, especially those who face martyrdom, that they may have a faith that is constant and pure.

For the safety of all those celebrating the New Year this evening, safety from physical harm and preservation from sin.

For those oppressed by hunger, sickness or loneliness, that through the mystery of the Nativity of Christ, they may find relief in both mind and body.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord