Word to the Wise
Friday, November 25, 2016 - Friday in the 34th Week in Ordinary Time
[Rev 20:1-4, 11-21:2 and Luke 21:29-33]FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2016. FRIDAY IN THE THIRTY-FOURTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME [Revelation 20:1-4, 11-21:2 and Luke 21:29-33] "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." [Luke] One of the challenges of reading the last sections of the three "synoptic gospels" is separating the immediate from the undetermined future. Some of Jesus' sayings were aimed at the situation of the time, some were used by the author to refer to the time of the audience, and some were meant for his "future coming." Scripture scholars debate these matters. The audience for the Gospel of Luke knew about the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. One of their most sacred sites was gone, along with the ability to offer sacrifice. This devastation took a long time to recover from, and the Jewish faith had to find new ways of understanding its identity. Since many of the first Christians also continued to think of themselves as Jews, the cruel facts were having an impact. The Gospel of Luke offers an important consolation: Jesus' words would outlast any material way in which they expressed their faith. Missionaries returning to Japan in the 19th century after more than a hundred years of absence found that the faith was still alive. There had been no Eucharistic sacramental celebration or church buildings, but the faith lived on in the rosary and "private" baptism. The words of Jesus that they had been taught were passed down through the generations. We would do well to remember this example and to fulfill what Jesus says in today's gospel: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." We just have to keep telling the story! AMEN
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