The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today continue to invite us to contemplate the final victory of good over evil as we come to the end of the liturgical year.
The text from the Book of Revelation is a vision of the Fall of Babylon.
* [18:1–19:4] A stirring dirge over the fall of Babylon-Rome. The perspective is prophetic, as if the fall of Rome had already taken place. The imagery here, as elsewhere in this book, is not to be taken literally. The vindictiveness of some of the language, borrowed from the scathing Old Testament prophecies against Babylon, Tyre, and Nineveh (Is 23; 24; 27; Jer 50–51; Ez 26–27), is meant to portray symbolically the inexorable demands of God’s holiness and justice; cf. Introduction. The section concludes with a joyous canticle on the future glory of heaven. (Revelation, CHAPTER 18, n.d.)
Psalm 100 declares that all Lands are summoned to Praise God.
* [Psalm 100] A hymn inviting the people to enter the Temple courts with thank offerings for the God who created them.
* [100:3] Although the people call on all the nations of the world to join in their hymn, they are conscious of being the chosen people of God. (Psalms, PSALM 100, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Luke the Destruction of Jerusalem is foretold.
* [21:24] The times of the Gentiles: a period of indeterminate length separating the destruction of Jerusalem from the cosmic signs accompanying the coming of the Son of Man.
* [21:26] The powers of the heavens: the heavenly bodies mentioned in Lk 21:25 and thought of as cosmic armies. (Luke, CHAPTER 21, n.d.)
The Living Space commentary on the readings today replaces the US Thanksgiving commentary from Creighton University.
Finally, Jesus speaks of various cataclysmic and apocalyptic signs to signal the end of time. They are typical biblical phenomena and not meant to be taken as exact foretelling of events. They conclude with Daniel’s vision of the Son of Man riding on a cloud coming with great power and glory. It is not intended to fill people with fear and trembling, except perhaps those who have lived wicked lives.
But for the disciples, the loyal followers of Jesus, it is a time to “stand up straight and raise your heads, for your redeeming is near at hand”. As we saw in yesterday’s Gospel, sufferings and tribulations are part and parcel of living the Christian life to the full. Our message and our vision is a ‘sign of contradiction’, a beacon of light to many and to others a threat to be radically uprooted.
But for those who have tried to live by the vision and values of the Gospel, for those who have tried to seek and find Jesus in all the people and events of their lives, who have spent hours with him in intimate dialogue, it is the time of their final liberation, a time when there will be no more sorrows, no more tears, no more hardships, no more disappointments. Rather, they will be entering an unbroken time of love and intimacy, of freedom and peace, of joy and consolation.
So, as we approach the end of another liturgical year, we do so on an upbeat note. (Living Space Thursday of Week 34 of Ordinary Time – Gospel | Sacred Space, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “The signs have been accomplished,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"The signs given in the Gospel and in prophecy and fulfilled in us show the coming of the Lord... We know that the coming is near by the fact that we see the fulfillment of certain signs of that coming that have been accomplished... The signs that Christ told them to look for are listed in the Gospel of Saint Luke: 'Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles until the times of the nations are fulfilled.' This has happened and no one doubts that it has happened... It is plain that there is no country or place in our time that is not harassed or humbled according to the words 'for fear and expectation of what will come on the whole world.' All the signs that the gospel describes in the earlier verses have mostly been accomplished." (excerpt from Letter 198) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9 comments that even though we are not living under Roman oppression, the same message can speak to us today. War, murder, immorality, and persecution: they are still with us. In our own lives, we still have to battle the lies of the devil and the temptations to sin. And yet no matter what evils we face, we can be certain that the end of the story is already written. By his death and resurrection, Jesus has conquered sin and death. As the author of Revelation wrote, “Salvation, glory, and might belong to our God” (19:1)! Sin will not have the last word.
Jesus tells us the same thing in today’s Gospel reading. When he comes again in power and glory, we will know that our redemption is at hand (Luke 21:28). In the meantime, let’s do what Jesus tells us: let’s stand erect and raise our heads (21:28). One day peace and justice will reign, and we will celebrate for all eternity with the angels and saints at the wedding feast of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).
“Lord, help me to resist evil and hold fast to you until you come again.” (Meditation on Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the texts for Thanksgiving from the USCCB. He expresses the value of gratitude in our lives and reminds us that God looks at people in a different way than we do.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares how the sacred ritual of the Eucharist participates in the flow of gratitude and generosity. The Eucharist, which means “thanksgiving,” has four main aspects. In our conscious participation, we become more like the one we follow.
First, we take our whole lives in our hands, as Jesus did. In very physical and scandalously incarnational language, table bread is daringly called “my body” and wine is called “my blood.”...
Second, we thank God (eucharisteo in Greek), who is the Origin of all that life and who allows and uses even death. We are making a choice for gratitude, abundance, and appreciation for Another, which has the power to radically de-center us….
Third, we break it. We allow our lives to be broken and given away. We don’t need to protect them. The sharing of the small self will be the discovery of the True Self in God…..
Finally, we chew on this mystery! This truth is known by participation and practice, not by more thinking or discussing. “Take this,” “eat and drink this”—not alone, but together, “until I return.” There we have the heart of the message, a “new covenant” of indwelling love that is not grounded in worthiness in any form, but merely in a willingness to participate and trust. Our drinking and eating are our agreement to “do what I can to make up in my own body all that still has to be undergone by Christ for the sake of his body the church” (see Colossians 1:24). Eucharist is a risky and demanding act of radical gratitude for, solidarity with, and responsibility to the work of God—much more than a reward for good behavior or any “prize for the perfect,” as Pope Francis says. (Rohr, 2022)
We consider the theme of gratitude as the celebration of Thanksgiving in the US joins our reflection on our preparation for the End Time.
References
Living Space Thursday of Week 34 of Ordinary Time – Gospel | Sacred Space. (n.d.). Living Space Sacred Space. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/o2345g/
Luke, CHAPTER 21. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/21
Meditation on Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/11/24/542590/
Psalms, PSALM 100. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/100?0
Revelation, CHAPTER 18. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/revelation/18?1
Rohr, R. (2022, November 24). Take, Thank, Break, Give — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/take-thank-break-give-2022-11-24/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture ... Retrieved November 24, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=nov24
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