Our society is very concerned about being nice. So much so that in an effort to be ‘nice’ we are discouraged from saying anything that might offend another person. That includes many Christian Truths. And so our voices are silenced or at the very least muffled. Absolute Truth falls victim to relativism and before we know it we become confused over what we really believe.
This is True. Jesus Christ founded One Church on His apostle Peter. He promised that not even the forces of Hell would be able to destroy it. He warned us against the many who would come in His name, teaching false doctrines, and cautioned us not to follow them. What pain it must cause Him to see how His Church has splintered.
This is also True. Good is stronger than evil. We have read the Book. We know how the story ends. Goodness and righteousness win. But before we get there we know we will suffer. The suffering, and the persecution, are necessary in order for us to bear witness to the Truth.
So you see it does not matter when the final judgment will come, we already know how it turns out. What matters is that Christ is here and now. What matters is how we receive Him. We were created for life with God in a world beyond the one we know. All that we do in this world is important only so far as it cooperates with God’s plan and those who love Him.
There is an old medieval mystery play that reminds us that in the end all that we take with us when we stand before the Throne of Judgment will be our Good Works. When we look back upon our lives will we see that we have used our gifts and talents to create a body of work that serves God or one that serves ourselves?
Pax vobiscum
33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time