Word to the Wise
Thursday, November 15, 2018 - Thursday in the 32th Week in Ordinary Time
[Phlm 7-20 and Luke 17:20-25]Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, "The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, 'Look, here it is,' or, 'There it is.' For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you." [Luke]
NOVEMBER 15 ST. ALBERT THE GREAT, O.P.
[Philemon 7-20 and Luke 17:20-25. Those are the Roman calendar scriptures. In Dominican locations: Sirach 6:18-21, 33-37 or James 3:13-18 and Matthew 25:14-23. St. Albert the Great is one of our big heroes.]
The coming of the Kingdom of God in terms of the end of time was a hot topic for the early Christian church, just as it has been a hot topic down through the centuries. Various "prophets" have claimed to determine the exact date and time and have gathered with their followers to await the end which did not come! As Jesus points out, the Kingdom of God is not subject to scientific determination and observation of the kind that made St. Albert the Great well-known in his time and in the history of science! We cannot set our watches or alarm clocks so we can be first in line, like the Pharisees who thought they might have an "inside track."
Jesus makes it clear that the Kingdom of God is in our midst in the form of faithful Christian people, who must often suffer the same fate that Jesus did by rejection and persecution. It is ironic that we could be so focused on the end of time that we forget to live our faith in the present time to the fullest. When the Pharisees posed their question, they were looking directly at the Kingdom of God in the person of Jesus. Can we say the same when we see our neighbor? Or better still, can they say the same when they see us? AMEN