Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church

Homily for November 18, 2007
Liturgical Year C - Cycle I
33nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Andrew Moyo
 Topic: Bearing Witness
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Reading I
Mal 3:19-20a
Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the LORD of hosts. But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.

Reading II
2 Thes 3:7-12
Brothers and sisters:
You know how one must imitate us.  For we did not act in a disorderly way among you, nor did we eat food received free from anyone.  On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked, so as not to burden any of you.  Not that we do not have the right.  Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you, so that you might imitate us.  In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat. We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a disorderly way, by not keeping busy but minding the business of others.  Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly  and to eat their own food.

Gospel:
Luke  21: 5-19
While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, he said, "All that you see here--the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down."

Then they asked him, "Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?"  He answered, "See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he,' and 'The time has come.' Do not follow them!  When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end."  Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

"Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony. Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,  for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.
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A catholic priest, a Jewish Rabbi, and a protestant minister happened to die at the same time. All appeared at the pearly gates but had to wait in a long line.  Suddenly a taxi drive joined them. Now, St. Peter beckoned him to come to the head of the line.  The three clergy men could not understand. The priest gathered courage, went up to St. Peter and asked, “How come that taxi driver gets to go ahead of us?  You know taxi drivers . . . and you know we three men of faith have been preaching all our lives, trying to keep people out of hell.”  St. Peter smiled and said, “I know, I know.  But this tax driver has scared the hell out of more people in one week than you three have done in your entire lives”

Today’s readings scare the hell out of us.  They speak to us about the end of the world.  The prophet Malachi says: the day is coming burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and evil doers will be stubbled, the day that comes shall burn them up. The gospel is equally alarming. Jesus prophesied that the Temple would be demolished. This prophecy actually became true in 70 AD when the Romans razed the temple to the ground. He then goes on to say that the whole world will be destroyed.  He said that natural disasters, earthquakes and hurricanes, and political turmoil demonstrate that the world is coming to an end. His words become even more personal.  “Some will die and they will be hated.”  Finally, there is an element of hope. “Those who persevere will be saved.”

Jesus knew apocalyptic language and he used it to reach his audience: This is apocalyptic language and is not to be taken literally.  Moreover, these things have been happening all the time throughout history.  Some have claimed they could use the scriptures to calculate the exact date of the coming of the messiah.  Such calculations, as we know, have always proved wrong.  Jesus even warns his followers: Take heed that you may not be led astray.

My dear friends, the purpose of these passages, about the end of the world, is not to frighten us but to help us to realize that this present world will pass. It is to help us prepare for his second coming. Jesus does not want to instill fear in his disciples but hope and confidence. God is a loving Father; he did not send his only begotten Son to frighten but to save us.  His message is clear: Do not be frightened…This will be a moment for you to bear witness.  As Christians, this is what we are called to do - to bear witness.  We are now living in this materialistic and self centered world. Therefore, we are called to bear witness to God’s immense love; to bear witness to the truth; to bear witness to what we believe; to bear witness to the moral teaching of the church.  This month we pray with the Holy Father for a deep respect of life - love for every human life from its beginning to its natural conclusion:

As witnesses, we will of course meet with opposition: What happened to Jesus happens to us.     

- they will manhandle and persecute you

- bring you to trial because of my name

- you will be betrayed by parents, relatives, friends

- some of you will be put to death

- you will be hated because of me

In spite of all this, Jesus encourages us not to be afraid.
Do not be frightened …But not a hair of your head will perish.
Your endurance will win you your lives.

We should be firm and not compromise our Christian values.  We  should keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.  See how the Lord as Messiah persevered. His endurance brought him victory.

Let me illustrate this with a personal experience. A couple of weeks back, I went golfing with the blessing and full support of Fr John.  Before leaving the house, he said to me, “You know sometimes you will miss the ball.”  I told him, “Never”.  So, I went out to the golf course, listened carefully to my instructor as he was giving me the golf lessons. We then went out to the driving range, where my instructor made a couple of swings, showing me how to make the golf swing. Finally, it was now my turn.  I positioned myself and was ready for my first ever golf swing.  I took a full swing and to my greatest surprise, the ball did not move: I just missed. This happened more than three times. So, I turned and I looked at my instructor.  He did not laugh at me. He said to me, “Those were good swings”.  I felt affirmed but the question was, “How did I miss the ball?”  He said to me: “You move your head as you swing. Keep your eyes fixed on the ball.”  I did that.  This time the ball moved but do not ask me how many yards.  The secret is to keep you eyes on the ball.

The secret in our Christian life as witness, is this:  We have to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.  If we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, we will never make the wrong move.  Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus and surely your endurance will win you your life.