A Lectio Divina Approach to the Sunday Liturgy
BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (Series 5, n. 51)
33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C – November 18, 2007
“The Triumph of the Lord”
BIBLE READINGS
Mal 3:19-20a // II Thes 3:7-12 // Lk 21:5-19
N.B. Series 5 of BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD: A LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY LITURGY includes a prayerful study of the Sunday liturgy of Year C from the perspective of the First Reading. For another set of reflections on the Sunday liturgy of Year C, please go to the PDDM Web Archives: WWW.PDDM.US and open Series 2.
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS
At times, the power of evil seems so overwhelming that even persons of faith began to falter. This is evident in the following account:
Archbishop Romero offers her a chair. Marianela prefers to talk standing up. She always comes for others, but this time she comes for herself. Marianela Garcia Vilas, attorney for the tortured and disappeared of El Salvador, does not come this time to ask the archbishop’s solidarity with one of the victims … This time she has something personal to say to him. As mildly as she can, she tells him that the police have kidnapped her, bound, beat, humiliated, stripped her – and they raped her. She tells it without tears or agitation, with her usual calm, but Archbishop Romero has never before heard these vibrations of hatred, echoes of disgust, calls for vengeance. When Marianela finishes, Archbishop Romero, who always gives advice and comfort, is weeping like a child without mother or home. He who always gives assurance, the tranquilized assurance of a neutral God who knows all and embraces all – Archbishop Romero doubts. He weeps and doubts.
The readings at the end of one liturgical year and the beginning of another are focused on the “end times”, with the encouraging message of God’s decisive triumph over the power of evil. The day is coming when all that is evil will be brought to nothing. This was the message of hope addressed by the prophet Malachi to the returned exiles around 450 B.C. Malachi, whose name means “my messenger” or “Yahweh’s messenger” voices dire threats that will befall the confirmed sinners on judgment day. At the same time, he has words of hope for the just.
The Liturgical scholar, Adrian Nocent comments on this Sunday’s Old Testament reading (Mal 3:19-20a): “This text refers to a time of great discouragement for Israel. The exiles have been back home for fifty years, and the Temple has been rebuilt, yet there is great disillusionment. The returning exiles had not been well received; their possessions had been taken by others; they were isolated and poor; there was little concern for them. The city was insufficiently fortified and often subject to raids. All this had serious repercussions on the religious life of the people. They were disillusioned, and their faith was weak; fidelity to the covenant was undermined. The disillusionment is summed up in words that Malachi quotes a little before today’s periscope: It is vain to serve God (3:14). Malachi now endeavors to revive the people’s spirit by telling them that the Day of the Lord is coming. First, the wrath of God will be unleashed against the wicked and the arrogant. They will burn up like straw, and there will be neither root or branch left of them … Fire symbolizes the chastising wrath of God … The second phase of the Lord’s coming will be the appearance of the sun of righteousness, the rays of which bring healing … In this passage the sun symbolizes the powerful intervention of the Lord in defense of the poor and the oppressed … The clear vision of our destiny in God makes illegitimate any kind of morose disillusionment; on the contrary, it should, as in Malachi, rouse our courage and make us vigilant.”
In our times, people oppressed and wounded by structuralized violence and injustice can draw hope from Malachi’s words. Bishop Romero’s anguish – and that of many hapless victims in today’s world – finds a fitting answer.
The biblical scholar, Eugene Maly explains the impact of this Sunday’s apocalyptic or end-time message: “The underlying conviction of the apocalyptic authors was not that the end was coming now, but that the end would witness God’s victory … It is the absolute assurance of the Lord’s control of history and of his ultimate victory at the end that is the heart of apocalyptic literature. Despite all the evil that can be imagined, he will emerge victorious … We look forward to the second coming of the Lord. The certainty of that coming is a prominent part of the Christian faith. The assurance of it is to brighten our lives and encourage us to labor mightily for the kingdom of God.”
Today’s Gospel reading (Lk 21:5-19) contains predictions of destruction, doom and persecution. The apocalyptic approach is incapable of conceiving a renewal from within. Rather, it shows that reconstruction is possible only after destruction. Jesus affirms the astounding power of God’s hand at work in history through his name. It demands that sinful structures that block God’s saving intervention be demolished. It requires patient perseverance in the face of hardships and difficulties, including persecution that must be endured in Jesus’ name. As we know, Archbishop Romero was murdered while celebrating Mass, the blood of his martyrdom mixing with the Eucharistic blood of Christ.
Toward the ends of the liturgical year, after we have experienced contradictions and trials in our daily endeavor to give true witness to Christ, the ultimate message that resounds is the triumph of good: the Lord’s triumph!
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART
Are there times when we feel that the power of evil is overwhelming and we begin to falter? How do we respond to the powerful images presented to us by the prophet Malachi? How does the image of the blazing fire relentlessly burning the wicked stubble in the field impact us? How does the image of the sun’s healing rays console us?
2 What do we do when we are disillusioned? Do we trust in the power and wisdom of our loving and just God? Do we allow ourselves to be confronted by the vision of our eternal destiny and the ultimate triumph of good? Do we look forward to the “Day of the Lord” at the end time? Do we trust in the triumph of the Lord even when the forces of evil seem daunting? How do we respond to the assurance given us by the Lord of his absolute control of history? Do we allow our options and actions in daily life to be shaped by the ultimate reality?
3 How do we respond to the following words of Jesus: “You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives” (Lk 21:17-19)? Do we resolve to persevere patiently in the face of hardships and difficulties, including persecution that must be endured in Jesus’ name? How do we intend to give witness to the triumph of the Lord in the “here and now”?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD
Leader: Lord Jesus, at times the threat of evil in today’s world is so forceful and overwhelming that we become disillusioned. We could only weep in distress and our faith tends to weaken. Have mercy on us and look kindly upon us. Give us the grace to experience the vision of our eternal destiny and the ultimate triumph of your power and goodness. Help us to trust fully that you have absolute control of history. Let our eyes gaze confidently toward your final victory. Grant us the strength and faith we need to persevere in trials and to overcome the forces of evil that assail us and wound our society. May the options we make and our actions in daily life be shaped by your final victory. We adore you as our triumphant Lord, now and forever.
Assembly: Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.
“But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.” (Mal 3:20a)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION
ACTION PLAN: Meditate on the ultimate victory of the good at the “Day of the Lord”. Resolve to overcome the forces of evil that seek to block God’s compassionate plan for each of us. With the grace of God and his assurance of ultimate victory, endeavor to overcome the poverty, injustice, oppression and falsehood that confront us daily in our community and society today.
ACTION PLAN: To help us develop a stronger trust in the ultimate triumph of our Savior Jesus Christ and a keener vision of the “Day of the Lord”, make an effort to spend an hour in Eucharistic Adoration. Visit the PDDM WEB site (www.pddm.us) for the EUCHARISTIC ADORATION THROUGH THE LITURGICAL YEAR (Vol. 3, n. 51): A Weekly Pastoral Tool.
Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang PDDM
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