4th Sunday of Advent C - Dec. 22, 2025

 4^th Sunday of Advent C - Dec. 22, 2025

Micah 5:1-4a; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45

 

Theme: Christmas is Saying Yes to God and Letting Him Make Us his Missionaries

We are on the Fourth and last Sunday of our Advent Journey, a time of preparation and repentance for Jesus' “three comings” (at Christmas, the end of time, and his daily coming into our lives). The liturgy of the first Sunday, with the candle of hope lit, urged us to always stay awake in prayer and with hope. On the second Sunday, we lit the candle of peace, and the Scripture readings called us to prepare the spiritual ways of the Lord, which are our relationships with God and our brothers and sisters that sins damage and transform into spiritual mountains, hills, valleys, and crooked roads. Hence, we must repent. The liturgy of the third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday (Rejoicing Sunday), with its candle of joy lit, taught us that the Advent season is the time we await the coming of our Lord, not with sadness, anxieties or worries, but with joy and gladness (first and second readings). To rejoice in the Lord always, we must be in good spiritual relationships with God and our fellow humans. Hence, Like the crowds, tax collectors, and soldiers in the Gospel we heard, we, too, should ask: “What should we do today, or what sins should we confess to rejoice in the Lord always on Christmas?” Now, on this fourth and last Sunday, the Scripture readings teach us that celebrating Christmas is saying Yes to God with Faith, Obedience, and Courage so that he can be born into our hearts, transform us, and use us to save our brothers and sisters. In the first reading, prophet Micah, who lived eight centuries before Jesus was born, proclaims that a long-awaited ruler from the line of David will come from the little town of Bethlehem. This is the hometown of the Virgin Mary, whose story we heard in the Gospel. The Blessed Mother Mary left her town, Bethlehem, and went to the Judean hills to visit her older cousin Elizabeth and share the Good News of the Infant Jesus she held in her womb. The second reading tells us why Jesus was born: He was born into the world to be himself an offering according to God’s will.

 Our Gospel passage is the Visitation of the Blessed Mary to her cousin Elizabeth. It immediately follows the Announcement of the Birth of Jesus (vv. 26-38) and precedes the canticle of Mary (vv. 46-56). Although some scholars consider our pericope a separate story from the Announcement of the Birth of Jesus, it is reasonable to see both texts as one (vv. 26-45) and our passage as the epilogue.^[1] So, Luke situates both the announcement of the birth of Jesus and Mary’s visitation to Elizabeth after the announcement of the birth of John the Baptist (vv. 5-25). Luke’s pattern of setting John the Baptist before Jesus has a purpose. Especially in our text, with the revelatory words of Elizabeth about the divine identity of Mary and the two Infants in their wombs (vv. 42-45), Luke aims to clarify the relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus. John the Baptist is the mere precursor of Jesus, and Jesus is the Messiah sent by God. This was to answer his contemporaries because there was tension and misunderstanding between the followers of John the Baptist and those of Jesus regarding the divine identity of their masters.

This Gospel text is a narrative account with prophetic words. It has two parts. The first part is the narrator's comments about Mary's trip, her greeting to Elizabeth, and Elizabeth’s reaction after hearing Mary’s greeting (vv. 39-41). The second part is Elizabeth’s prophetic words, which reveal the divine identities of Mary (Blessed and Mother of her Lord) and the Infant she holds in her womb (Blessed and Lord) (vv. 4-45). 

In the passage that precedes our story, Luke told us that Mary said Yes to the angel of the Lord, accepting God’s will to be done to her (see Lk 1:38).  Now, in the first part of today’s Gospel passage (vv. 39-41), Luke recounts that Mary set out and traveled in haste to the Galilean hills to visit her cousin Elizabeth and share with her the Good News of the Infant Jesus she held in her womb. Here, Mary becomes a disciple. She travels hurriedly to fulfill the discipleship duty of announcing the Good News. Before celebrating Christmas in just two days, God wants us to say “Yes,” as the Blessed Mother Mary did, confirming that we agree to let his will be done to us. His will consists of accepting his Son Jesus to be born into our hearts and families and letting him transform and make us his missionaries, who spread the Good News of joy, peace, justice, and love that the Baby Jesus brings us. Note that the young lady Mary traveled a long distance and alone from Bethlehem to the Judean hills (Luke did not say the name of the town where Elizabeth lived, but tradition locates it as En Kerem, near Jerusalem, probably about 75 miles from Nazareth). This detail shows her courage and determination to be a disciple. Let us overcome any fear and all problems that may prevent us from fulfilling our discipleship duty of sharing the Good News with our brothers and sisters.

The second part of our Gospel (vv. 42-45) recounts that upon receiving the greeting of Mary, or to say it better, upon meeting the Infant Jesus in Mary’s womb, the Infant John the Baptist in the womb of Elizabeth leaped with joy, and his mother was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then, Elizabeth pronounced the prophetic words that revealed the divine identity of Mary (the Most Blessed and Mother of the Lord) and Jesus (the Blessed and Lord). Jesus wants to continue to bless God’s people around us. That is why he needs you and me, as he needed his Mother Mary, to carry him wherever he wants to go and to whomever he wants to meet and bless. This is what Christmas is about.

May this Eucharistic celebration enable us to imitate the Most Blessed Mary by saying Yes to God’s will, fulfilling our discipleship duty of announcing the Good News of Christmas to others, and taking the baby Jesus wherever he wants to go and to whomever he wants to visit and bless. Amen.  

Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD

Pastor at Holy Family Catholic Church in Jackson, MS

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator

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[1] Raymon E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament, 232.

3rd Sunday of Advent C. Dec. 15, 2024

 3^rd Sunday of Advent C. Dec. 15, 2024

Zephaniah 3: 14-18a; Philippians 4: 4-7; Luke 3: 10-18

 

Theme: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!”

We are in the third week of our Advent Journey, a time of preparation and repentance for Jesus' “three comings” (at Christmas, the end of time, and his daily coming into our lives). The liturgy of the first Sunday, with the candle of hope lit, urged us to always stay awake in prayer and with hope. On the second Sunday, we lit the candle of peace. The Scripture readings called us to prepare the Lord's paths. In the spiritual sense, the “Lord’s paths” are our relationships with God and our brothers and sisters that we need to repair. Sins damage and transform them into spiritual mountains, hills, valleys, and crooked roads. Hence, we must repent. The liturgy of this third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday (Rejoicing Sunday), with its candle of joy lit, teaches us that the Advent season is the time we await the coming of our Lord, not with sadness, anxieties or worries, but with joy and gladness.

 Our Gospel passage is a continuation of last Sunday’s Gospel. It is situated at the beginning of the section about the preparation for Jesus’ public ministry (3:1 – 4:13). Luke places this big section between the Infancy accounts (2:1-52) and Jesus’ Ministry in Galilee (4:14 – 9:50).^[1] Luke’s pattern of setting John the Baptist before Jesus has a purpose. He intends to clarify the relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus because the evidence in all four Gospels shows that there was tension and misunderstanding between the followers of John the Baptist and those of Jesus regarding the divine identity of their masters (John the Baptist and Jesus.) Luke attempts to bring a solution by emphasizing John’s prophetic role (see vv. 1-6) and humility in his testimony about himself not being a Messiah as the people thought he was (see vv. 15-16).^[2]  Our pericope is preceded by the first part of John the Baptist’s preaching (vv. 1-9), and it is followed by the story of the baptism of Jesus (vv. 21-22).

This Gospel text is an exhortation. Luke structures it in the form of questions and answers. The crowds ask questions, and John the Baptist answers them. The questions and answers move from what the people are expected to do (vv. 10-14) to the divine identities of John the Baptist and Jesus (vv. 15-18). 

 Indeed, this Gospel continues last Sunday’s story in which John the Baptist, a traveling preacher, called them and all of us to radical repentance: “Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” (Luke 3: 4-6). That was the assignment of repentance that John the Baptist gave us in last Sunday’s Gospel, and I hope we already did it. If not, we have a few days before Christmas to do it. Then, in today’s passage, Luke tells us that the crowds react to the sermon of John the Baptist and express the desire to repent and be baptized. Note that these crowds do not consist of the Pharisees or high priests because Luke informs us that the Pharisees and high priests rejected the baptism of John the Baptist in Luke 7:30 and 20:5, respectively. So, here in our story, these people are instead the ordinary Jews (see v. 8) and those who are on the fringes of Jewish society, such as the tax collectors and soldiers who accept John the Baptist’s baptism and are ready to repent. You and I are part of these people as we, too, have accepted to repent.

Let us pay attention to the structure of their question: “What should we do?” When we search for the meaning of life, we ask this question, too. It is a question about the future. Do we look to the future? Are we filled with expectations like these people of the Gospel? Do we believe in the coming of Jesus at Christmas, at the end of time, and in his daily coming into our lives? If so, then each one of us should also ask the same question to find out what we should do so that our Lord might come to be born in our families and hearts this Christmas.

The people in our Gospel story got different answers. To the crowds, John the Baptist says, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” (V. 11). To the tax collectors, he answers, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” (V. 13). And to the soldiers, he replies, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.” (V. 14). As we too ask the same question to John the Baptist to know what we should do, I invite you and myself to do an examination of conscience and imagine what his answer could be to each of us depending on our jobs, responsibilities, and ministries (schoolteachers, students, nurses, judges, parents, children, priests, lay ministers, etc.) We need to take our preparation for the three comings of Jesus seriously. Through this examination of conscience, we will know our spiritual mountains, hills, valleys, and crooked roads that we must fix before Christmas. Remember, we should do this work of penance with joy as Prophet Zephaniah (first reading) and Saint Paul (second reading) ask us.

In our first reading, the prophet Zephaniah invites “daughter Zion” to rejoice. Zion, the holy Temple Mountain in Jerusalem, stands for the people of Israel, including us today. Instead of being afraid and anxious about things that sometimes we cannot control, prophet Zephaniah exhorts us to shout for joy, to sing joyfully, to be glad, and exult with all our hearts. Why? Because our Lord, whom we are waiting for, will be in our midst soon at Christmas. He will rejoice over us with gladness, renew us in his love, and remove disaster from among us, says prophet Zephaniah (3:14-18a).

In our second reading, Saint Paul, too, calls the Philippian believers and us to rejoice. “Brothers and sisters, Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). Saint Paul wrote this letter when he was imprisoned. At that moment, he did not know if he would be executed or released. Regardless of the decision about his sentence, he invites the Philippians and us to have no anxiety at all. Instead, we should make our requests known to God by prayer and petition. Then, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts (see Phil 4:5-7).

Let us pray in this Mass that we might always rejoice, no matter what we go through. We also ask God's grace to help us know the sins that we might renounce. Amen.

Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator

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[1] See the outline of the Gospel of Luke suggested by Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, ed. By John J. Collins, Gina Hens-Piazza, Barbara Reid OP, Donald Senior CP. (Great Britain: T&T Clark Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2022), 1298.

[2] Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, 1308.

2nd Sunday of Advent C. Dec. 8, 2024

2^nd Sunday of Advent C. Dec. 8, 2024

Baruch 5: 1-9; Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11; Luke 3:1-6

 

Theme: Prepare the Way of the Lord, and you Shall See the Salvation of God

Advent season is when we prepare ourselves for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at Christmas, at the end of time, and for his daily coming into our lives. As part of our preparation, the liturgy of last Sunday called us to be always vigilant and pray so that we get the strength to escape the imminent tribulations and stand before the Son of Man (see Luke 21: 36). From today’s Scripture readings, our preparation for the coming of our Lord Jesus consists of preparing the way of the Lord. This is a call for repentance.

Our Gospel passage is situated at the beginning of the section about the preparation for Jesus’ public ministry (3:1 – 4:13), serving as an introduction to this section. Luke places this section between the Infancy accounts (2:1-52) and Jesus’ Ministry in Galilee (4:14 – 9:50).^[1] Luke’s pattern of setting John the Baptist before Jesus has a purpose. He intends to clarify the relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus because the evidence in all four Gospels shows tension and misunderstanding between the followers of John the Baptist and those of Jesus regarding the divine identity of their masters (John the Baptist and Jesus). Luke attempts to bring a solution by emphasizing John’s prophetic role in our text, hence the quotation from Isaiah (40:3-5).^[2]

This text is in the form of an Old Testament prophetic call. Luke first introduces John the Baptist by providing a historical setting for his story (vv. 1-2). Then, he includes two essential details about John’s mission. The first detail speaks of John the Baptist as a traveling preacher. The second detail is the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, which is included in John the Baptist’s preaching, along with the quote from the prophet Isaiah (vv. 3-6).

The first part of our Gospel story (vv.1-2) contains the dates and names of historical personages in Jesus's time, which must be explained to understand this Gospel passage better. Tiberius Caesar: He became emperor after the death of Augustus in A.D. 14 and reigned until A.D. 37, which was throughout Jesus's lifetime.^[3] The fifteenth year of his reign is probably around A.D. 27 to 29, depending on the method used to calculate his first regnal year. If A.D. 14 were his first regnal year, then the fifteenth year of his reign would be A.D. 28.^[4] Pontius Pilate was the prefect of Judea (A.D. 26 to 36). According to the historian Josephus, Pontius Pilate was a greedy and ruthless prefect with little regard for the local Jewish population and their religious practices (see Luke 13:1).^[5] Herod was tetrarch of Galilee: This Herod is Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great, who reigned from 37 B.C. to 4 B.C. Herod Antipas ruled over Galilee and Perea from 4 B.C. to A.D. 39. His official title, “Tetrarch,” literally means “ruler of a quarter.” But this title was used to designate any subordinate prince.^[6] Philip: This is another son of Herod the Great and the brother of Herod Antipas. He was also the tetrarch, the ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, the territory to the north and east of the Sea of Galilee from 4 B.C. to A.D. 34.^[7] Lysanias: Luke says that he was the tetrarch of Abilene. This is a territory northwest of Damascus. However, nothing is known about him.^[8]

After naming the civil rulers in v. 1, Luke now mentions the religious leadership of Palestine in v.2. Annas and Caiaphas: He served as the high priest from A.D. 6 to 15. He was deposed by the Romans in A.D. 16 (A.D. 15) and replaced by his son Eleazar for one year. Then, various members of his family succeeded until, eventually, Caiaphas, Anna’s son-in-law. Caiaphas served as a high priest from A.D. 18-36. Luke mentions both Annas and Caiaphas perhaps because one was high priest for life, even when deposed, or because Annas remained most influential in the religio-political scene to the point that many considered him the real power broker.^[9] John, the son of Zachariah: This is John the Baptist, Jesus' cousin. Zachariah and Elizabeth were his parents. Luke is the only New Testament writer who associates John the Baptist's preaching with a call from God.

Vv. 3-6. He went through [the] whole region of the Jordan: There is a question among the Synoptic Gospels regarding the exact place where John the Baptist began his public ministry. Mark simply says: “in the desert” (Mk 1:4). Matthew adds a minor detail, “in the desert of Judea” (Mt 3:1). Note that Judea is the jurisdiction of Pontius Pilate. Further on, both Mark and Matthew say that the crowds come from Judea and Jerusalem. This is a region accessible to Herod Antipas’ territory. However, for Luke, John the Baptist began his ministry in the “desert… [the] whole region of the Jordan” (vv. 2-3). This suggests it is along the Jordan River, including the Judean side of the river, which is Roman territory.^[10]  In vv. 4-6, Luke quotes Isaiah 40:3-5. He interprets the role of John the Baptist not only as the one who preaches baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins but also as the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. John the Baptist is established here as a precursor.^[11] All flesh shall see the salvation of God: Luke emphasizes his theme of the universality of salvation.

What does this Gospel passage teach us today? Our Gospel is the story of John the Baptist preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins to prepare his people for the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. People needed to repent to start a new era, the kingdom of God, which Jesus established when he commenced his ministry. Likewise, the Church calls us to repent to begin a new era with the birth of our Lord Jesus at Christmas. According to John the Baptist, repentance of sins implies some works we must do before Christmas. Quoting the prophet Isaiah, he asks us to prepare the way for the Lord Jesus, who will be born in our hearts and families. The assignment consists of making Jesus’ paths and all the winding roads straight, lowering every mountain and hill, filling out every valley, and making rough ways smooth (Luke 3:4-6). This is precisely what the prophet Baruch asked us to do in our first reading.

In our first reading, prophet Baruch called his contemporaries, personified as the “lady Jerusalem,” to prepare themselves for God's promised glory. Note that Baruch was a scribe for the prophet Jeremiah. They both witnessed Jerusalem's ruin and the chosen people's exile in Babylon in the late sixth century BC. In our first reading passage, Baruch comforts his fellow Israelites by calling them to prepare themselves for the day when God will bring them back to their land, leading them in joy by the light of his glory, with his mercy and justice (v. 9). Their self-preparation consists, first, of throwing off their garments of grief and putting on the garment of the splendor of glory and the cloak of justice from God (vv. 1-4). Second, Baruch calls them to make low every lofty mountain and the age-old depths and gorges be filled to level ground (v. 7). This is a call for repentance of their sins.

Both the Gospel and the first reading do not discuss the roads or avenues in our neighborhoods or the highways and freeways in our cities. Instead, they discuss the spiritual way, which stands for our relationships with God and our brothers and sisters. This spiritual way leads the Baby Jesus to be born in our hearts and families on Christmas when God decides to take our human flesh and come to live with and among us. On Christmas (also on Jesus’ second coming at the end of time and his daily comings in our hearts and lives), the New-Born Emmanual will lead us in joy by the light of his glory, mercy, and justice (Baruch 5:9). So, as part of our preparation for this glorious day, the Church exhorts us to repent from sins because sins damage the “way of God” (our relationship with God and our brothers and sisters) and transform them into spiritual mountains, hills, valleys, and rough ways, preventing, then, the Baby Jesus from being born in our hearts and families. For instance, pride and greed transform our spiritual road into a “valley.” Lust and envy transform them into “mountains and hills,” preventing us from coming to Church to pray to God and serve him. Gluttony and wrath make our spiritual roads “winding.” And sloth damages our relationships with God by making our spiritual lives become “rough ways.” Those sins are the seven mortal or deadly sins that lead to further sins.

Let us prepare the way of the Lord. Let us prepare our relationships with Jesus and our brothers and sisters. In our second reading, Saint Paul reassures us of God’s support in our works of repentance. He says that God, who began a good work in us, will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6). He also prayed for us that our love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that we may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ (on Christmas, at the end of time, and Jesus’ daily coming into our hearts and lives (Philippians 1:9-10).  Saint Paul tells us that Jesus is the source of the fruits of righteousness (Philippians 1:11). So let us ask him, in this liturgy of the Mass, to assist us in our works of repentance. Amen.

Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator   

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[1] See the outline of the Gospel of Luke suggested by Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, ed. By John J. Collins, Gina Hens-Piazza, Barbara Reid OP, Donald Senior CP. (Great Britain: T&T Clark Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2022), 1298.

[2] Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, 1308.

[3] Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, 1308.

[4] NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[5] NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[6] NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[7] NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[8] Michael F. Pattella, The Gospel According to Luke: New Collegeville Bible Commentary, Volume 3 (Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2005), 23. See also NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[9] Michael Patella, “Luke” in The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, 1308. See also NABRE, note to Luke 3:1.

[10] Michael F. Patella, The Gospel According to Luke: New Collegeville Bible Commentary, Volume 3, 25.

[11] Michael F. Patella, The Gospel According to Luke, 25. 

1st Sunday of Advent. Dec - 1, 2024

   1^st Sunday of Advent. Dec - 1, 2024

Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:12 – 4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36

 

Theme: Vigilance and Prayer

Happy New Year to all! Last Sunday, the solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, marked the end of the Liturgical Year B. So, this weekend, we start a new liturgical calendar, Year C, with the first Sunday of Advent. From its Latin origin, Adventus, the word “Advent” means “coming.” The liturgy of this four-week season prepares us not only for the coming of Jesus into history over 2000 years ago, whose anniversary we celebrate on Christmas, but it also prepares us for Jesus’ second coming in glory at the end of time as well as for the coming of Jesus in our daily lives. All these three comings of Jesus (at the end of time, on Christmas, and every day) require good preparation.  A good celebration of Christmas will depend on how we prepare ourselves during this Advent. The celebration in heaven will be certain if we prepare ourselves seriously for the return of Jesus at the end of time. And Jesus’s real presence amid the happenings of our daily lives depends on how we prepare ourselves daily to welcome him. Although Christmas gives us the image of a holiday with decorations and shopping, let us remember that Advent is a particular time of repentance. The purple color of the Advent liturgy reminds us of this repentance. The four candles of the Advent Wreath teach us that our repentance and waiting for Jesus’ coming should be with hope (first Sunday), peace (second Sunday), joy (third Sunday), and love (fourth Sunday). 

The Scripture readings of this first Sunday of Advent focus on two comings of Jesus. The first is the coming as the fulfillment of God’s promise to the chosen people, as we heard in our first reading. In the extremely dark time in Judah’s history (during the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians), all seemed lost. The Israelites believed that God had turned away from them. Yet, the prophet Jeremiah delivered them a message of hope and invited them to await the coming of God’s reign. Christian tradition sees the fulfillment of this promise in the Nativity of Jesus, which we will celebrate at Christmas. So, four weeks from now, considering the words of the prophet Jeremiah, God will raise up for David a just shoot. He shall do what is right and just in our land. We shall be safe, and we shall dwell securely. (Cf. Jeremiah 33:15-16). The second coming is the last judgment at the end of time, as it is described by Saint Luke in our Gospel. In our second reading, Saint Paul exhorts us to love one another while we are waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus.

 

Our Gospel passage is in the context of the belief in the early expectation of the end of the age. Luke's early Christian community was dealing with the delay of the Parousia (the second coming of Jesus) when this passage was written. Luke was inspired by Mark 13 in his eschatological discourse, but he made some crucial changes. For example, Mark uses the vandalism of the Jerusalem temple by the Romans (Mark 13:14) as the apocalyptic symbol (see Daniel 9:27; 12:11), indicating the end time and the return of Jesus. However, Luke removes the apocalyptic setting in the text preceding our passage (Luke 21:20-24). He separates the historical destruction of the temple of Jerusalem from the signs of the second coming of Jesus. In between, he inserts a period of indeterminate length that he refers to as “the times of the Gentiles” (Luke 21:24).^[1] Our Gospel story occurs at the end of the section of the Apocalyptic discourse (21:5-38). The second part of our pericope acts as a conclusion of this section. So, before our text, the audience of Luke had already heard about the Temple’s destruction foretold (vv. 5-7), warning signs of the end (vv. 8-19), and the great tribulation: siege and capture of Jerusalem (vv. 20-24).

The first part of this pericope (vv. 25-28) is apocalyptic literature, and the second part (vv. 34-36) is an exhortation. Jesus first foretells what his second coming will look like; then, he calls his audience to vigilance to escape the tribulations.

In the first part of our Gospel story (vv. 25-28), Jesus foretells the cosmic signs that will precede his second coming. He cites the sun, moon, stars, and the sea (v. 25). People will die of fright…For the power of the heavens will be shaken (v. 26). Besides the cosmic signs, Jesus adds the signs from the heavens. The cosmic signs combined with those from the heavens will cause intense fear. And then… Power and great glory (v. 27): “And then” is a transition from the cosmic signs and the power of the heavens to the coming of the Son of the Man. “Power and great glory” describes the divine nature of Jesus. Stand erect and raise your heads… Your redemption is at hand (v. 28): This verse introduces the topic of being vigilant, which the narrator will develop in the second part of our text (vv. 34-36). In contrast with the people who will die of fright (see v. 26), faithful disciples of Jesus are called to stand erect and raise their heads, ready to meet their Lord. “Your redemption is at hand” conveys confidence and hope. The meeting with the Son of Man will bring redemption.

In the second part of our Gospel passage (vv. 34-36), the narrator exhorts his audience to be vigilant so that the day of the Parousia (the second coming of Jesus) does not catch them by surprise. He describes a couple of things that they need to be vigilant of. For instance, they should not let carousing, drunkenness, and anxieties of daily life break them down. Pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man (v. 36): Tribulations are real, and they are at hand. To “stand before the Son of Man,” the faithful disciples must “escape” the tribulations first. So, they need “strength” to do that, and this strength comes from “prayer.” So, to be vigilant means to pray always. In our second reading, Saint Paul adds one more virtue that we need to observe while we are waiting for our Lord Jesus: He exhorts us to love one another so as to strengthen our hearts and be blameless in holiness before our God and Father (1 Thes 3:12-13).

 In this liturgy of the Mass, let us ask God’s grace to help us stay vigilant in prayer, love one another, and repent as we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus at Christmas, the end of time, and his daily coming into our lives. Amen.

Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Cordinator 

 

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[1] NABRE, note to Luke 21:5-36.  

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Nov. 24, 2024

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Nov. 24, 2024

Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 1:5-8; John 18:33b-37

 

Theme: Do We Have Tools to Build the Kingdom of God Where We Live?

All the scripture readings we heard today testify that Jesus, our Lord, is the King of the Universe. In the first reading, Prophet Daniel prophesized it when he said that one (referring to Jesus), like a Son of man, would come on the clouds of heaven and receive dominion, glory, and kingship. In the second reading, the author of the book of Revelation calls Jesus the faithful witness of the kingdom, the firstborn of the dead, and ruler of the kings of the earth. In the Gospel, Jesus himself confirms in front of Pilate that he is a king and came into the world to testify to the truth. Our Lord is the King of the Universe. His kingdom is of justice, love, peace, and joy. He himself started building it; his apostles and all the Christians who lived before us did their part in this project of building the kingdom of God. Today is our time to continue the same work wherever we live.

Our Gospel passage is in the heart of the section called “The Trial of Jesus Before Pilate” (18:28 —19:16). The Jewish religious leaders had a plan to execute Jesus. Because they did not have the right to put anyone to death, they brought Jesus to the praetorium to be judged and condemned to death by Pilate (see Jn 18:28-33). This is Jesus’ third appearance before three different authorities. Looking at the previous verses, the evangelist informs us that Jesus was brought to Annas first. Annas was the high priest and the father-in-law of Caiaphas. He also was the father or father-in-law of six other high priests. He was no longer in office at the time of Jesus, but the Jewish religious leaders brought Jesus to him because he continued to wield his influence. His hearing of Jesus was essential but not official. John is the only evangelist who recounts Jesus’ inquiry before Annas (John 18:12-14, 19-24). Next, Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas, the actual and official high priest. The evangelist mentions this appearance only but does not give any report (see Jn 18:24). The Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), who do not have an account of Jesus’ appearance before Annas, report this one before Caiaphas. Finally, Caiaphas sent Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor. Our pericope covers the part of the judgment regarding the kingship of Jesus (18:33b-38a). After our pericope, the section continues with Pilate trying to release Jesus because he found no guilt in him. As the custom of Passover required that Pilate release one prisoner, he then suggested to the Jews to choose between Jesus and the criminal Barabbas, whom he should release. They all chose Barabbas to be released and Jesus to be condemned (18:38b-40). Again, Pilate attempted to release Jesus, but because of the Jews’ pressure, he ended up handing him over to them to be crucified (19:1-16).

This Gospel text is a conversation narrative. It can be structured in three movements based on the three questions Pilate asked Jesus. (1) Pilate’s first question is whether Jesus is the king of the Jews. Jesus answers him with a question, and Pilate replies to him (vv. 33-35a). (2) While Pilate’s second question is to know what Jesus did precisely, in his answer, Jesus talks about his kingdom (vv. 35b-36). (3) In his third question, Pilate wants Jesus to confirm if he is a king. Jesus confirms that he is (v. 37).  

Pilate opens the inquiry by asking Jesus if he is the king of the Jews. The context of this question is that, at that time, the kings of the Jews were the local rulers chosen by Rome (like the kings Herod Antipas in Galilee and Herod Philip in Philippi). Then, the Jewish religious leaders accused Jesus of claiming himself to be their king, making it sound like Jesus was organizing a rebellion to overturn Roman power. So, through his question, Pilate wants to mean that the one who chooses the kings for the Jews is he, but how Jesus is a king, and who chose him? Jesus’s response is a question in which he wants to know if what Pilate asserts through his question is what the people, eventually the Jewish religious leaders, told him or comes from his conviction. Here, Jesus puts Pilate into his responsibility. He should not judge Jesus based on what others tell him but on what he thinks is true. In his response to Jesus’ question, Pilate tells Jesus that he is not a Jew to know if Jesus claims to be the king. He affirms that his information about Jesus came from Jesus’ nation and the chief priests (vv. 33-35a).  Pilate’s second question changes the topic. It is no longer about whether Jesus is the king but about what Jesus did so that his own fellow Jews brought him (Jesus) to him (Pilate). However, in his answer, Jesus does not respond to this second question but returns to the first topic. He speaks of his kingdom without saying directly if he is a king. He describes it not as the earthly kingdom but as the heavenly. He supports his thesis with the evidence that there are no attendants who fight for him to keep him from being handed over to the Jews (vv. 35b-36). With Jesus’ description of his kingdom, Pilate understands that Jesus is a king. Yet, in his third question to Jesus, he wants him to say it clearly. Then, Jesus affirms that he is a king. He goes on to declare that he was born and came into the world with a mission to be the king and testify to the truth. He asserts that anyone who belongs to the truth listens to his voice (v. 37).   

Through this Gospel passage, our Holy Mother Church wants us to know and believe that Jesus is the King of the Universe and that we, as his followers, are called to continue to build God’s kingdom, which Jesus started, wherever we live. The Gospel teaches us that Jesus’s kingdom is that of truth. “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.” (V. 37). To be the builders of God’s kingdom, we, too, must testify to the truth in all we do. The Jewish religious leaders who brought Jesus to Pilate failed to testify to the truth. The real reason they wanted to have Jesus arrested and condemned is not what they told Pilate (Jesus claims to be the king of the Jews) but that Jesus declared to them that he was the Son of God, and they did not believe in him. Also, Jesus’ interpretation of the Laws (Torah) often undermines their teaching, and Jesus’ integrity challenges their witness, the comfortable routines they have settled into. Today, many people continue to fail to testify to the truth. Sometimes, we prefer lies over truth to secure jobs or human glories. Today’s liturgy challenges us to testify to the truth because only where the truth is there is love, justice, peace, and joy.

May this Eucharistic celebration enable us to build God’s kingdom of justice, peace, love, and joy by testifying to the truth in all we do and wherever we live. Amen.

Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD

SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator