Are You Ready For Jesus?

Homily 08 11 2013
19th Sunday OT - C

View the Readings for this day

The three readings today insist that the Journey of Faith is a RADICAL JOURNEY.

The first reading takes us to the night of the Original Passover which was a preparation for the Exodus. God's People were headed for freedom in the Promised Land with the watchfulness and readiness of the Gospel.

The Second Reading recounts the journey of Abraham and Sarah who listened to God and left their homeland, trusting in God, in faith, and sought to do God's Will. The community had become lax in its faith and the author emphasized that the believers must remain strong and faithful.

We continue to read Luke's Gospel arranged like a travel narrative. In today's Gospel we are reminded that we must pass through this world as pilgrims. What is required is discipleship, assuming a posture of detachment from wealth and a call to be generous to the poor.

Bishop Sheen once shared that we will have three surprises in heaven.

The first surprise: We will be surprised to see that many people we expected to be in Heaven are not there. St. John of the Cross gives the reason why they are not there: "At the evening of our life, we shall be judged on how we have loved."

The second surprise: We will be surprised to see that the people we never expected to be in Heaven are there. It is because God judges man's intentions and rewards them accordingly.

The third surprise: We will be surprised to see that we are in Heaven. Since our getting to Heaven is principally God's work, we should be surprised that God somehow "went out of His way" to save us simply because we showed the good will and generosity to cooperate with His grace.

In today's Gospel Jesus answers the question who will be saved, when and how.

Today's Gospel reading reminds me of the old story of the apparition on the corner of Main and Market in a busy city...

It was Saturday morning when Fr. Placid heard a knock on the rectory door and an extremely excited lady said, "The Lord has appeared on the corner of Main and Market." Father was in the process of trying to decide if she was suffering from stress or whatever, when a second person came running, "Father, Father, the Lord has appeared on the corner of Main and Market." "When?" Fr. Placid asked. "He's there right now," they both answered.

So Fr. Placid went down the block where a large crowed had formed, and sure enough, he saw Jesus. After a while the Lord left. Fr. Placid didn't know what to do, so he called a monsignor friend of his. His friend told him to call the bishop. So Father Placid then called the bishop and told him the news, "The Lord has appeared on the corner of Main and Market. What should I do if he comes back?" The bishop thought for a while and then told Fr. Placid he'd get back to him.

The bishop then called Rome, and, being an important bishop, he got the pope. "Holy Father," he said, "One of my priests, Fr. Placid, reports that the Lord has appeared on the corner of Main and Market in his parish. He wants to know what he should do in case the Lord comes back." After a few moments the pope replied, "Tell Fr. Placid to look busy."

Good advice for us all. The Lord is coming back. How should we prepare? Not just by looking busy, but by being busy, doing good to others by humble service, by living our Catholic lives faithfully.

Jesus warns the community and us today that we must always be busy awaiting the Master's Return. We must be watchful and ready, prepared, vigilant, and involved in stewardship. This is what characterizes the disciple.

There are many Christians who are destined for heaven, but who, in their folly, have left the road which leads there and now travel on their own. Today's warning is that our call to judgment will come to each like a thief in the night.

For Luke there is a period of time before the end of time and we must be awake and be involved.

It might be helpful to understand the wedding customs in Palestine in the time of Jesus. The wedding party waited with the bride for the Groom to come. Their invitations did not read like invitations today with a specific time. The Groom didn't have to announce the wedding time. He didn't have to come at 6 or 7 pm sharp.

And so the wedding party was probably expectant at first but as time wore off so did the expectancy.

The groom in Luke comes before Midnight. Jesus concluded the parable by telling them how happy are the servants who are awake when the Master returns.

jjl

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