Fr Alan's Weekly Reflection

LAST DAYS

Our life is full of last days-last day of school, last day of work, last day of living at home with one’s parents, last day of serving on a committee whether it be church or social. It is at times like these that we realise that a part of our life is coming to an end.

Our readings for this Sunday speak about last days. The questions that Jesus deals with in the Gospel is the same question that sometimes crosses our minds-when will the end of the world come? The answer lies in how we live our lives in the present preparing for it. We speak about the Gospel being Good News, but it certainly does not sound like it when Jesus talks of wars and revolutions, nations fighting against nations and great earthquakes occurring. However, it helps us if we understand that the author of this Sunday’s Gospel is using Apocalyptic writing. This is a literary device employed to illustrate that hope is offered amid crisis. Our Second Reading from this Sunday reminds us that as Christians we are called to live out that hope by quietly working in service of the Lord.

Now we are almost at the end of this year, the end of exams, the end of school getting ready for holidays. The scriptures tell us we need to be ready for the end times whether it be our own death or the end of the world. We need to live our lives as best we can by treating other people fairly and with justice and keep up our relationship with God. When our time on this earth is up what is that we would like people to be saying about us?

We know earthquakes, wars and disasters have been happening for thousands of years. They are certainly not signs that the end of the world is coming soon. Only God knows when that will happen. Our faith in Jesus reminds us that in times of trouble that he will always be with us.