Reading
Lk 21:5-11
5 Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 6 “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.”
7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
Comment
Jesus' discourse on the end times (eschatological discourse) begins with these verses from the Gospel of Luke. The events narrated concern the destruction of the Temple and of Jerusalem, but they are also teaching for the Church, how it will have to await the return of Christ.
Israel has not accepted the message of spiritual liberation preached by Jesus and will forever lose its freedom and splendor. This is the risk for us if we do not let the gospel free us from the "nostalgia" of the temple and from false prophets.
The nostalgia of the temple is typical of a religiosity that thinks we can enclose God within the majesty of the buildings of worship and in the apparent solidity of the clerical institution. It is an attitude that extinguishes the spirit of prophecy, the ability of faith to be leaven in the world.
False prophets, on the other hand, draw the pretext from the painful events that cyclically cross life on this earth to announce the imminence of the end, proposing easy escape routes, through a disembodied and sectarian religiosity.
There are many tribulations that men of all times will have to face, but "the end will not right away" (v. 9). The trials that we are called to undergo, individually and as a community, represent an opportunity to test our perseverance and our solidarity with men while waiting for that ultimate end of history in which Christ awaits us.
Prayer
O Lord, who through the events of history guide us towards liberation and resurrection, help us to wait for you with hope and industriousness. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
