Hello! After hearing from many that last week's articles about the proposed Covid vaccines were helpful, here's another good article about it: Vaccines and Doubly Remote Cooperation in Evil.
In the readings for Mass this week, we hear from Luke 21. In this chapter, Jesus tells us to keep our focus on his presence in the Eucharist during times of upheaval. This is a good time to examine our hearts. Are we troubled and worried about many things? Jesus invites us to lean even more on Him with confidence!
In Luke 21, Jesus foretells the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in A.D. 70. He says: "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." The Temple was the special place of communion with God on earth. Its destruction was a major crisis for the Jewish people's faith. But God did not leave his people abandoned. Jesus is now the Temple where God dwells. And he left us his Real Presence in the Eucharist, in every Catholic Church.
The events of the past nine months have been a crisis of faith for all of us. We've lost a lot. Yet no matter what is taken away - our house, job, school, favorite eatery, friends, loved ones - Jesus' presence remains with us in the Eucharist. Is this belief the source of your hope? Is Jesus the rock on which you stand when the winds blow and the storms swirl around you? In times of crisis, Jesus wants you to lean on his presence even more firmly. Is his presence in the Eucharist the source of your confidence?
Continuing in Luke 21, the disciples question Jesus about the timing of the Temple's destruction. But Jesus doesn't answer them directly. Instead, he focuses their attention on what's really important - their faith in Him. He says, “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." Jesus knows our tendency to focus on all the bad news, which makes us terrified, fearful, and worried.
There's many voices we hear every day on TV, the internet, the news. Who has our ear? Is it worldly talk shows, or Jesus? What I read and listen to, does it support my faith, encourage my hope, and impel me on in love of God and neighbor? Or does it take me down paths of doubt, anger, despair, and inaction? Jesus warns what we listen to affects the quality of our lives - and our eternity! Do I focus on Jesus' presence, visit him in the Eucharist, and take time to be quiet and listen to his voice? It's crucial we do this, to judge carefully the voices we follow.
Jesus concludes a section of Luke 21 by saying, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place." Jesus was familiar with bad news. But he was a man of hope, always confident that good and not evil has the last word. He lived in confidence that God the Father would turn Good Friday into Easter Sunday. He remained hopeful and encouraged the best in people.
Are you a person of hope? Do you witness to the hope we have in God, and encourage the best in people? Do you try to brighten the lives of those around you, and remind them God will be victorious over every hostile power in the end? We need to pray for this optimism every day, to be joyful witnesses of the goodness of God!
The following is an excerpt from a letter written from prison by St. Paul Le-Bao-Tinh, one of the Vietnamese martyrs we celebrate today. He writes to seminary students in 1843: "In chains for the name of Jesus, I wish to relate to you the daily trials that beset me, in order that you may be inflamed with love for God and join me in his praises. The prison here is a true image of hell: cruel tortures of every kind, shackles, iron chains, manacles, hatred, vengeance, calumnies, obscene speech, quarrels, swearing, evil acts, curses, as well as anguish and grief. But the God who once freed the three children from the fiery furance is with me always. He has delivered me from these tribulations and made them sweet. In the midst of these torments, which usually terrify others, I am, by the grace of God, full of joy and gladness, because I'm not alone - Christ is with me. He bears the whole weight of the cross, leaving me only the tiniest bit. He's not a mere onlooker in my struggle, but a contestance and the victor and champion in the whole battle. Therefore upon his head is placed the crown of victory, and his members also share in his glory ... I write these things to you in order that your faith and mine may be united. In the midst of the story I cast my anchor toward the throne of God, the anchor that is the lively home in my heart. We may not again see each other in this life, but we will have the happiness of seeing each other again in the world to come when, standing at the throne of the spotless Lamb, we will together join in singing his praises and exult forever in the joy of our triumph."
This testament of faith is needed once more today! In the midst of crisis, let us lean on Jesus with us in the Eucharist, the victor over every evil. Let's not give our attention to voices that make us terrified, but rather be people of optimism and hope! Pray for this confidence in Jesus, who is with us always!
Peace,
Father Ryan