GOD’S KINGDOM IS AMONG US

November 11, Thursday

Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time

 

      The author of the book of Wisdom gives high praise to wisdom. She is personified, she is like a spirit that moves. She is like the breath of God that orders all things well.

      To the Pharisees and perhaps to the disciples too, anxiously looking for signs, Jesus says: The kingdom of God is among you, right in your midst. It is already present in our lives. In other words, be wise and be committed to the present, to building up God’s kingdom now. Seek eternity and eternal life in the present, and God’s good day will come in God’s good time.

 

First Reading: Wisdom 7:22–8:1

She had this inquiring mind coupled with dedication. She was one of a kind, able to multitask and keep an edge; nimble in argument, able to conduct three conversations at the same time; kept a clean record, always had her wits about her; wouldn’t hurt a fly; was drawn to the good; sharp as a tack, nothing got past her; always had an orange in her pocket; cordial with humans, kind to animals; mature, confident—could hold her own in male company. She was a model of virtue, didn’t miss a trick; she could discern the movements of the soul—whether intellectual or moral, subtle or not-so-subtle.

Wisdom has moves that motion doesn’t have. Her purity points to the kernel of any argument. Wisdom is the breath of God, breathing out and breathing in; an unfiltered emanation of the Omnipotent; there is no bad breath from her. She’s the mirror image of eternal light, a reflection of the potency and goodness of God.

Yes, Wisdom is one, but she can interact with everyone else; she never needs to renovate, yet she doesn’t hesitate to innovate; she influences one generation after another, turning them into friends of God and the prophets.

God loves no one more than the person who’s spent a semester with her. 29 -30 She is more splendid than the sun; but like the stars, she prefers spot lighting—bright but not blinding, which is good after dark; owlish about evil, she can spot mischief at midnight.

Lady Wisdom has a wide acquaintance, extending from one end of the world to the other; she’s overcommitted but seems to manage smoothly.

 

Gospel: Luke 17:20-25

Jesus, grilled by the Pharisees on when the kingdom of God would come, answered, “The kingdom of God doesn’t come by counting the days on the calendar. Nor when someone says, ‘Look here!’ or, ‘There it is!’ And why? Because God’s kingdom is already among you.”

He went on to say to his disciples, “The days are coming when you are going to be desperately homesick for just a glimpse of one of the days of the Son of Man, and you won’t see a thing. And they’ll say to you, ‘Look over there!’ or, ‘Look here!’ Don’t fall for any of that nonsense. The arrival of the Son of Man is not something you go out to see. He simply comes.

“You know how the whole sky lights up from a single flash of lightning? That’s how it will be on the Day of the Son of Man. But first it’s necessary that he suffer many things and be turned down by the people of today.

 

Prayer

Lord our God,
your kingdom is not an established order
but something that is alive and always coming.
Make us aware that it is to be found
where we let you reign,
where we and the kingdom of people
give way to your kingdom,
where we let your justice and love and peace
take the place of our fumbling and stumbling.
Lord, establish your kingdom among us
through Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.

 

Reflection:

The Kingdom of God is not a spectacle
Jesus says, “The reign of God is already in your midst”. It is in the very person of Jesus, – the Messiah – King. The reign of God is revealed in his teaching, in his many healings of the sick, in his freeing of people from the power of evil spirits and in his compassion for the sinners and the outcast. Yes, this is Emmanuel – God “in their midst”.

Pope Francis explains this passage by saying that “Do not give in to the temptation of thinking that the Kingdom of God is a spectacle, like those who make a pageant of their wedding, turning it into a showplace for vanity and an opportunity to be seen.” Instead, it is already there present in the everyday holiness, lived unseen by the families. The Kingdom of God, will grow like wheat, not surrounded by things of beauty but in the midst of weeds, the Pope said.

“The Kingdom of God is not a spectacle”. We should remember that making a show of power or might was one of the three temptations that Jesus faced in the desert. That temptation accompanied him throughout his life – the temptation to show a spectacle – so that everyone might believe! Even on the Cross, the voice of the devil is heard again: “If you are the Son of God, come down from the Cross!” However, the Kingdom of God is silent, it grows within; but it grows slowly and silently.

How often do we fall into the temptation of having a spectacular show of power in the Church? Pope recommends a brief examination of conscience to avoid falling into the temptation of this show of power, by asking a few simple questions: “Are you a Christian? Yes! Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Yes! Do you believe in the sacraments? Yes! Do you believe that Jesus is there and that He has come here now? If your answer is “Yes”, then why don’t you go to adore Him, why don’t you go to Mass, and why do you not take Communion, so that his Kingdom may “grow” within you?

Pope renews the challenge before the people of God, that we do not to fall into the temptation of giving a show before the world especially in celebrating sacraments. While celebrating weddings in particular, couples must discern, whether they “have come to receive a sacrament, to have a feast like at Cana in Galilee, or to have a pageant, to be looked at, for vanity?”.

 

Video available on Youtube: The Kingdom of God is not a spectacle