From our Pastor’s Desk

Dear Family:

As we draw close to the end of the liturgical year, we are reminded of an article of faith which we profess in our Creed: namely that, the Lord Jesus Christ “will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.” The first reading today calls us to be aware that the judgment of the Lord is a certainty, that we need to lead lives that are in accordance with His commandments.

There are a total of 34 weeks in Ordinary Time and this weekend we celebrate the 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Therefore, our liturgical year is coming to an end. Next weekend we will celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, closing the liturgical year and in two weeks, we will celebrate the First Sunday of Advent. You may know that our Sunday readings are on a three-year cycle. In year A, we read predominantly from Matthew’s Gospel; in year B, we read from Mark’s Gospel; and in year C, we read from Luke’s Gospel. John’s Gospel comes up mostly during Lent and Easter seasons each year.

During Ordinary Time, we read the gospel in order. Since we are coming to a close of our liturgical year C, we are reading today from near the end of Luke’s Gospel. Jesus knows his Passion is coming and seeks to prepare his disciples for what is to come. For us, it symbolizes being ready for the Second Coming at the end of the ages.

Christ’s final judgment could be likened to a test students must take not knowing the date and time for it. To pass the test, students have to prepare for it. Moreover, to pass a test which has no fixed date and time, one has to be ever prepared for it. Similarly, we should be always prepared for the final judgement since we do not know the day or the hour that Christ will come again, nor the moment of our death.

Unfortunately, just as there are cheaters who try to leak fake test papers, so there have been false prophets who claimed to know the day of the Lord’s coming. In each case, their predictions have been false. I remembered the well-announced doomsday of January 1st, 2000. Even Hollywood has made movies about it like the film “2012,” based on the Mayan Calendar End of the World controversy. When I heard that, I knew that “prophet” was being enrolled into the “Hall of Fame of False Prophets”; for how could he claim to have known what Jesus says that neither the angels nor the Son of Man know (Mark 13:32).

Now, as good students, we should ignore the fake prophecies and rather focus on our preparations for the Lord’s coming and judgment. There are both spiritual and social preparations to be made. Our spiritual preparation includes regular communication with God through worship, prayers and reading of His Word, bearing testimony to Christ by word and deed, and coping with challenges or persecutions that arise because of our faith in Him as today’s gospel reading tells us. The social preparation includes meeting our genuine obligations to family and society at large. In today’s second reading, St. Paul reminds us of one such obligation: we should work to earn our living (2 Thess. 3:10). This exhortation was initially addressed to Christians in Thessalonica, some of whom felt that if the Lord were to be coming in their lifetime, there was no point in working.

But what difference would it make if you knew the exact day of the Second Coming? If we knew for a fact that it would be tomorrow, I am sure we would be in a hurry to repent and turn our hearts fully to God. On the other hand, if we knew it won’t happen for 50 years, what would we do? Would we live 48 years doing whatever we wanted and then when the time came close, repent and follow Jesus? That is not what we are supposed to do. We are to live as good Catholics every day. If we do that, we do not have to worry about when the Second Coming will happen.

In the past weeks, the news around our country and the world has not been encouraging or good. Shootings in our country have become the daily bread in news. Is the violence we see in our world today a sign that the end is coming soon? I do not know. Society is on both a spiritual and moral decline. If we try to stand up for what we believe in, people may ridicule us, but we should not be surprised by that. Jesus told us that “they will seize and persecute” us and that we “will be hated by all because” of his name. The ridicule might come from individuals we do not know and even from those we know. It might even come from the government saying we cannot talk about things we feel are wrong. There are those in society and in government who even want to force everyone into allowing abortion and medical procedures to change a person’s physical sex. That is not God’s plan.

Whatever struggles we face in our lives, as Jesus says, “It will lead to your giving testimony.” We are not to cause fights, but we are to give testimony to what and how much our faith means to us in the way we respond to our struggles. Sometimes God uses our struggles to help us turn our lives to him. God can change suffering into opportunity. As to our “giving testimony,” it might begin with something as simple as wearing a Crucifix or another religious symbols like scapulars, saint’s medals, and the like, as a sign that we believe in Jesus. How about a printed t-shirt or a sweatshirt with a Christian message on it? It might take courage but it is a good thing to do.

It may not be easy, but “giving testimony” is what the saints and martyrs have been doing for centuries. St. Paul speaks of how he wanted to present himself as a model for us in today’s second reading. Do you have someone in your family who is a model of faith for you? That person who always goes to church. The one you ask to pray for you. Do you try to imitate them? Are you a model for someone? Your children? Your co-workers? Your Neighbors? Are you a good model? Someone has to be the first to do good.

No one is perfect among us. That is why Jesus came to die for us. Being a good Christian is not always easy. We are never ready on our own. We cannot save ourselves, but Jesus can and does. May we have the grace we need to follow Jesus and to be an example to others. Today’s readings invite us to reflect on our faith, the importance of living responsibly, and the hope we have in God's promises. As we prepare for the end of the liturgical year, let us remain steadfast in our faith, trusting in God's justice and mercy as we navigate the challenges of life.

We still have the opportunity to change for the better and be ready for Jesus as One Body, One Spirit, One Family! Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Katharine Drexel, Saint Michael the Archangel, St. José Gregorio Hernández, Pope Saint Pius X, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Charbel, pray for us.

Yours in Christ Jesus!
Fr. Omar