November 2018

Christ the King, “B” – November 18, 2018

Frackville, From the Pastor /

Jesus proclaimed His kingdom on the Mount of Beatitudes overlooking the Sea of Galilee. It is a place of great beauty and calm peace. In this place He spoke of those who would inherit the kingdom of God: the poor in spirit, the humble, the meek, people who work for justice, the peacemakers, those who suffer for their faith and do good. They seem an unlikely group of people who will triumph over time and become a strong and powerful kingdom in contrast to those whose power is violent and harsh. In today’s Gospel Jesus tells Pontius Pilate that His kingdom is not of this world but it is a kingdom that bears witness to the truthfulness of who people are, the goodness of relationships, and is a place where people show mercy to those in need. In this kingdom people look after one another and care for one another. Jesus speaks of bearing witness to the truth that each person is created good by God, given the gift of human freedom, and called to love others in rich and strong relationships. He continues this in forgiving those who have sinned. He washes the feet of His friends to show them the example of love. His kingdom is of service in which the power of love shines out.

On this feast of Christ the King, we are called to examine our hearts in the light of the attitudes and action of Christ. When we examine our emotions, we may find, some deeply hidden negative, even violent, attitudes towards others. We are called to discover the truth about ourselves and offer this to the healing grace of God. When we find these attitudes, then we can ask the Lord to show us His mercy and to heal us. Advent, which begins next week, is a time of preparation for Christmas when we can become better followers of Jesus Christ to serve in His kingdom.

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XXXIII Sunday in Ordinary Time, “B” – November 18, 2018

Frackville, From the Pastor /

As we come to the end of another year in the cycle of life, the Church turns our attention to the end of the world, to the time when the Son of God will come again on the clouds with great power and glory. Jesus describes a time of true resolution, at the very end, when all evil will be wiped away and true justice will be seen on earth. The language used is eloquent. Angels will gather the chosen from the four winds. In earlier prophecy, as we heard in today’s first reading, Daniel uses words of great inspiration. Michael will stand up to guard us. God’s people will be spared. All those names are written in the Book will arise. We will rise to everlasting life. We will shine like bright stars. These powerful words and visions are proclaimed to inspire us now to keep faithful in all we do, to practice true hope in the Lord who goes before us and makes a place for us in His Father’s kingdom.

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XXXI Sunday in Ordinary Time, “B” – November 4, 2018

Frackville, From the Pastor /

“Listen, Israel: the Lord our God is the one Lord…” Today’s reading instruct us to let these words be written on our hearts.

This short prayer was part of the daily prayer of Jesus, a faithful Jew, and so it immediately comes to His lips when He is asked which is the first of all commandments of the Law. The genius of Jesus is to link it straight away with the command from Leviticus, “You must love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus understood that to love God with all our heart and soul, mind and strength, it is not sufficiently merely be able to recite the formula from the scriptures, even less to touch or even to wear the box containing the words. Love for God has to be expressed in action towards those among whom we live. As Jesus himself is the living sign of God’s love for us, so we are called to be living signs revealing love for God in the mercy and compassion we have towards our neighbors. The scribe who questioned Jesus comments that this understanding of the Law is far more important than any holocaust or sacrifice. This links nicely with today’s 2nd reading from the letter to the Hebrews, where we are told that one perfect sacrifice of Jesus does what all the sacrifices of the old Law could do; that is to save us from our sins.

The sacrifice of Jesus is made effective for us through our sharing in the life of the Church and through our participation in the sacraments, which are our most precious souvenirs, our way to heaven. The first commandment of the Law is to love God with all our heart and soul, mind and strength, and the second is to share in the life of the Church, especially in the Eucharist.

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