Luke 21: 25-28, 34-36
Lord Jesus, send your Spirit to help us to read the Scriptures
with the same mind that you read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In
the light of the Word, written in the Bible, you helped them to discover the
presence of God in the disturbing events of your sentence and death. Thus, the
cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life
and of resurrection.
Create in us silence so that we may listen to your voice in
Creation and in the Scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor
and suffering. May your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples
from Emmaus, may experience the force of your resurrection and witness to
others that you are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice, and
peace. We ask this of you, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed to us the Father
and sent us your Spirit. Amen.
A Key
to the Reading:
The liturgical text of this Sunday leads us to meditate on the
discourse of Jesus on the end of the world. Today, when we speak of the end of
the world, the reactions are quite varied. Some are fearful. Others are
indifferent. Others begin to take life more seriously. Others still, as soon as
they hear some
terrible news, say: “The end of the world is drawing near!” And you? What is your opinion on this matter? How is it at that at
the beginning of the liturgical, the first Sunday of Advent, the Church
confronts us with the end of history?
Keeping
these questions in mind, let us now try to read the text in such a way that it
may challenge and question us.
In the course
of our reading we shall try to concentrate not on the things that are fearful,
but on those that give us hope.
A
Division of the Text to Facilitate Our Reading:
•
Luke 21: 25-26: There will be
signs in sun and moon and stars.
•
Luke 21: 27: The Son of man
will come on a cloud.
•
Luke 21: 28: The rebirth of
hope in our hearts.
•
(Luke 21: 29-33: The lesson of
the parable of the fig tree).
•
Luke 21: 34-36: An exhortation
to watchfulness.
The
Text:
25 "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and
upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and
the waves, 26 men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on
the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will
see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and
great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise
your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
34
"But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation
and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly
like a snare; 35for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the whole
earth. 36 But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape
all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of
man."
A
Moment of Prayerful Silence
so that the Word of God may penetrate and enlighten our life.
to help us in our personal reflection.
•
What did you feel during the
reading? Did you feel fear or peace? Why?
•
Did you come across anything in
the text that gave you hope and courage?
•
What is it today that urges
people to have hope and to keep going?
•
Why is it that at the beginning
of Advent, the Church confronts us with the end of the world?
•
What can we answer to those who
say that the end of the world is drawing near?
•
How do we understand the image
of the coming of the Son of man on a cloud?
for those who wish to delve deeper into the theme.
•
The context of Jesus’ discourse
The text of this Sunday’s Gospel (Lk 21: 25-28,
34-36) is part of the so-called “eschatological
discourse”(Lk 21: 8-36). In Luke’s Gospel, this discourse is
presented as Jesus’ reply to a question
put to him by the disciples. Looking at the beauty and greatness of the temple
of Jerusalem, Jesus had said: “Not one
stone will be left standing!” (Lk 21: 5-6). The disciples were
looking for more information from Jesus regarding the destruction of the
temple, and they asked: “Master, when will this
happen and what will be the signs to show that it is about to happen?” (Lk 21: 7).
•
The aim of the discourse: to
help discern events
In Jesus’ time (year 33), many people, when faced with disasters, wars, and
persecutions, said: “The
end of the world is drawing near!” The communities of Luke’s time (year 85) thought the same. Besides, during the destruction
of Jerusalem (year 70) and the persecution of Christians, which had now been
going on for forty years, there were those who said: “God is no longer in control of the events of life! We are lost!” Hence the main point of the
discourse is that of helping the disciples
to discern the signs of the times so as not to be deceived by such sayings
concerning the end of the world: “Beware not to allow yourselves to be deceived!” (Lk 21: 8). The discourse presents several signs that help us in
our discernment.
•
Six signs to help us discern
the events of life
After a short introduction (Lk 21:5) the discourse proper
begins. Jesus enumerates, in an apocalyptic style, the events that can be seen
as signs. It is important to remember that Jesus was living and speaking in the
year 33, but that the readers of Luke were living and listening to the words of
Jesus about the year 85. Many things had happened between the years 33 and 85,
for instance: the destruction of Jerusalem (year 70), persecutions and wars
everywhere, some
natural disasters. Jesus’ discourse announces
these events as taking place in the future. But the community sees these things
as in the past, as already having taken place:
•
First
sign: the false messiahs who will say: “It is I! The time is at hand!” (Lk 21:
8); Second sign: war and
rumours of war (Lk 21: 9);
•
Third sign: nation will rise
against nation (Lk 21: 10)
•
Fourth sign: earthquakes,
hunger and pestilence everywhere (Lk 21: 11);
•
Fifth sign: persecution of
those who proclaim the word of God (Lk 21: 12-19);
•
Sixth sign: the siege and
destruction of Jerusalem (Lk 21: 20-24).
When they heard Jesus’
proclamation, the Christian communities of the year 85 might have come to the conclusion: “All these things have come to pass or are in the process of
happening! All this is happening according to a plan foreseen by Jesus! Thus
history is not slipping from God’s hands”! Especially
regarding the 5th and 6th signs they could say: “This is what we are experiencing
today! We have already reached the 6th sign!” Then comes the question: How many sings are there left before
the end comes?
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus says about all the seemingly
very negative things: “These are just the beginning of birth pangs!” (Mk 13: 8) Although birth pangs
are very painful for a mother, they are not signs of death but of life! They
are no reason for fear, but for joy and hope! This way of reading the events
brings calm to all. As we shall see, Luke expresses this same idea but in
different words (Lk 21: 28).
After
this first part of the discourse (Lk 21: 8-24) comes the Gospel text of the
Mass of the first Sunday of Advent.
•
Luke 21: 25-26: Signs in
sun and moon and stars
These two verses describe three
cosmic phenomena: (1) “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars”; (2) “The roaring of the sea and waves”; (3) “The
powers of the heavens will be shaken”. In the eighties, when Luke
was writing, these three phenomena had not taken place. The communities could say: “This is the seventh and last sign still to come before the end!” At first
sight, this seventh sign seems more terrible than the preceding ones,
especially that Luke says that men will be fainting with fear and with
foreboding of what is coming on the world. In truth, despite their negative
appearance, these cosmic images suggest something very positive, namely, the
beginning of a new creation that will take the place of the old creation (cf Ap 21: 1). It is the beginning of the new heaven and the
new earth, proclaimed by Isaiah (Is 65: 17). They usher in the manifestation of
the Son of God, the beginning of the new times. Luke 21: 27: The coming of the Kingdom of God and the
manifestation of the Son of Man
This image comes from Daniel’s prophecy (Dn 7: 1-14). Daniel says that after the disasters caused by
the four kingdoms of this earth (Dn 7: 1-8), the
Kingdom of God will come (Dn 7: 9-14). The four
kingdoms, all have animal features: lion, bear, panther, and wild beast (Dn 7: 3-7). These are animal–like kingdoms. They take the life out of life (even to this
day!). The Kingdom of God is represented by the figure of the Son of Man, that is, it
has human features (Dn 7: 1 3). It is a human
kingdom. The task of the Christian communities is to build this kingdom that
humanizes. This is the new history, the new creation, in whose
realization we must collaborate.
•
Luke 21: 28: A hope that
grows in the heart
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus says: “This
is just the beginning of the birth pangs!” (Mk 13:8) Here, in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus says: “when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is
drawing near!” This affirmation shows that the
aim of the discourse is not to cause fear but to raise hope and joy in a people
suffering from persecution. Jesus’ words helped
(and still help) the communities to read events from the point of view of hope.
It is those who oppress and exploit the people who must fear. They, indeed,
must know that their empire is finished.
•
Luke 21: 29-33: The lesson
of the parable of the fig tree
When Jesus invites us to look at the fig tree, he is asking us
to analyze the events taking place. It is as though he was saying: “Learn to read the signs of the times from the fig tree and so you may
discover when and where God comes into your history!” Then he ends the lesson of the parable with these words: “Heaven and earth will
pass away; but my words will not pass away!” By this very well-known phrase, Jesus renews hope and once more alludes to
the new creation, which was already in being.
•
Luca 21: 34-36: An
exhortation to watchfulness
God is always coming! His coming takes place when least
expected. It may happen that He comes, and that people are not aware of the
hour of his coming (cf Mt 24: 37- 39). Jesus advises
people to be constantly watching: (1) avoid all things that may disturb or
burden the heart (dissipations, drunkenness and worries of life); (2) pray
always, asking for strength to go on and wait standing for the coming of the
Son of man. In other words, the discourse asks for a double attitude: on the
one hand, the watchfulness of one who is always aware, and on the other, the
serene calmness of one who is at peace. These attitudes are signs of great
maturity, because they bring together an awareness of the seriousness of the
task and an awareness of the relativity of all things.
•
When the end of the world will
come
When we say “The end of the world,” what world are we talking
about? Is it the end of the world of which the Bible speaks or the end of this world, where reigns the power of evil that drives away and
oppresses life? This world of injustice will come to an end. No one knows what
the new world will look like, because no one can imagine what God has prepared
for those who love him (1 Cor 2: 9). The new world of life without death (Apoc 21: 4) surpasses all things just as the tree surpasses
its seed (1 Cor 15: 35- 38). The early Christians were anxious and wanted to
know the when of this end (2 Ts 2: 2; Acts 1: 11). But “it is not for you to know the times and the hour that the Father
has set with his
authority” (Acts 1: 7). The only way to contribute to the end “and
that God brings about the time of rest” (Acts 3: 20), is to witness to the Gospel in every moment and action even
to the ends of the earth (Acts 1: 8).
•
Our time! God’s time!
“For no one knows the day or the hour: not even the
angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mk 13: 32; Mt
24: 36). God sets the time for the end.
God’s time cannot be measured by the clock or calendar. For God, one day is
like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day (Sl
90: 4; Pt 3: 8). God’s time runs independently of
us. We cannot interfere with that, but we must be prepared for the moment when
the hour of God comes into our time. Our security does not lie in knowing the
hour of the end of the world, but in the Word of Jesus present in our lives.
The world will pass away, but his word will not pass away (cf
Is 40: 7-8)
•
The context of our text in Luke’s Gospel
For us 21st century people, apocalyptic language seems strange,
difficult, and confused. But for the people of those times, it was the common
way of speaking and all understood. It expressed the strong certitude of the
faith of the little ones. Despite all and against all appearances, they
continued to believe that God is the Lord of history. The main purpose of
apocalyptic language is to foster the faith and hope of the poor. In Luke’s time, many of
the people of the communities thought that the end of the world was close at hand and that Jesus would have come
back. That is why there
were those who stopped working: “Why work, if Jesus was returning?” (cf 2 Ts 3: 11). Others stared at heaven, waiting for the return of Jesus on
the clouds (cf Acts 1:1 1). Jesus’ discourse shows that no one
knows the hour of the final coming. Today we have the same thing! Some await the coming of Jesus so much that they
do not see his presence among us, in our daily concerns and events.
God is
our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore
we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in
the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains
tremble with its tumult.
There
is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is
in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God will help her right early.
The
nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The
Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Come,
behold the works of the Lord, how he has wrought desolations in the earth. He
makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the
spear, he burns the chariots with fire! "Be still and know that I am God.
I am exalted among the nations; I am exalted in the earth!" The Lord of
hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Lord
Jesus, we thank for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will
of the Father. May your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength
to practice that which your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, your
mother, not only listen to but also practice the Word. You who live and reign
with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.