24
Nov
Nov
Reflection Luke 21: 12-19
The Gospel passage for our reflection today is a continuation of yesterday’s readings – about the end-things. Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and there by an end to a religiosity that was cantered on the Jerusalem temple. Catastrophes, wars, famines, riots and persecutions (vv. 9-12) are bound to happen. Think of the many wars of today, so many calamities today: A realistic look at the world around would tell us that all what Jesus speaks of in the Gospel are the happenings of our times too. We live in a world, marred by calamities and violence, by abuses and destructions that wound the creation, our common home and also the human family that lives here, and the violence against the Christian community itself. But then, there is the reassurance: “Not a hair of your head will perish” (v. 18). This is our hope. It speaks of the attitude that a Christian must adopt in living this history characterized by violence and adversity. It is the attitude of hope in God, which allows us not to be overwhelmed by tragic events. Indeed, they are an “opportunity to bear witness“ (v. 13). Christ’s disciples cannot remain slaves to fears and anxieties; instead we are called to live with the certainty that the Lord’s action of goodness provides us with providential and reassuring tenderness. When our faith is put to test, when confronted with the tempests of life, remember that it is the sign of a world as God wants it, is approaching. It is He, the Lord who guides our existence and knows the ultimate purpose of things and events. The Lord calls us to collaborate in the making of history by becoming peacemakers and witnesses of hope in a future of salvation and resurrection. It is our Faith in God that makes us walk with Jesus and face the troubles of this world. The assurance of the Lord accompanies us that the power of the Spirit of God will destroy the forces of evil. Love is powerful, because it is God: God is love. The Christian martyrs are an example to us – our martyrs of Vietnam – St. Andrew Dung-Lac, and companions, 117 people who were martyred in Vietnam between 1820 and 1862 give us an example of courageous witnessing to God’s love, even in the face of dreadful tortures. they were all canonized by Pope St. John Paul II on 19 June, 1988. Despite persecution, the lives of the martyrs give us an inheritance to preserve and imitate: the Gospel of love and mercy. The lives of the martyrs invite us to respond to hatred with love, to offence with forgiveness. May the Virgin Mary, through her maternal intercession, sustain our daily journey of faith, following the Lord Who guides our history.