Always Ready

As we considered last week, on November 20, another liturgical year will come to an end with the solemn celebration of the Feast of Christ the King. 

As the liturgical year ends, the flow of the Catholic liturgy focuses on the theme of the Second Coming.

The eschatological teachings of Jesus are very clear throughout the Gospels.  We pronounce our certainty of eternal life each time we pray together the Profession of Faith. "We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come".  The particular judgment, heaven, purgatory, hell, the last judgment, and the hope of a new heaven and a new earth are the components of this fundamental teaching of Christianity. 

Many times our culture avoids consideration of death.  Many attempt to avoid the fullness of the eschatological teachings of the Gospels.  There is a Heaven. However, it is also equally true that there is a Purgatory and that there is a Hell.

Someday, as yet unknown to us, this life will come to an end and God will judge us according to our deeds.  "For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night.  Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober" (1 Thessalonians 5: 2, 7).

We need to be ready.  This is the theme of the Catholic liturgy as we approach the celebration of the Feast of Christ the King.

It is interesting to note how the liturgical year ends with the theme of the Second Coming, while at the same time, the new liturgical year also focuses on the same theme.

One would think that the new liturgical year would begin with a reflection on the Incarnation.  Nevertheless, the reason why the liturgical year ends and begins with the same theme is clear: if we have already embraced Jesus in his first coming, we will have no fear of his second coming.

What does it mean to be a true disciple of Jesus? 

Since a disciple is a student and a follower, each disciple must be a good listener.  Listeners are open and attentive. The true disciple will be eager to listen, to discover, and to understand.  The message will never be subject to critical analysis.  Instead, true disciples approach the wellspring of truth seeking to satiate a profound desire for happiness, transcendence and peace.

For true disciples know that only then will they find freedom in the truth. 

True discipleship requires perseverance.  The journey is long and obstacles abound.  True disciples will overcome discouragement and continue along the narrow road that leads to eternal life. Perseverance demands that as true disciples, we embark upon new beginnings. 

Courage is a third quality of authentic discipleship.  Disciples will not be able to simply contain the message.  The acquisition of truth will compel them to spread it to others. Moreover, they will always encounter challenges when they preach the truth to others.  Some will welcome it; many will reject it. 

Another characteristic of true discipleship is selflessness.  True disciples are consumed with love for someone much greater than they are.  When witnessing, these disciples do not draw attention to themselves nor do they preach their own message.  Empty of self, they are filled with the presence of the God who has called them by name.

Authentic disciples, while they struggle with their own sins and weaknesses, are nevertheless faithful stewards and messengers because their hope has been placed in the one who has called them.

Finally, another characteristic of the authentic disciple of Christ is passionate love.  Passionate love for Jesus allows the first disciples to leave everything behind immediately.  Because of their personal encounter with the Lord, they will never be the same.  Their lives have changed forever.  Discipleship is having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

This Sunday's gospel passage illustrates that we need to use and develop the gifts that God gives to us.  We will be judged on how well we accomplish this task.  God is the giver of all of the gifts that we posses. 

Although everyone has a different amount of gifts, everyone is called to implement the use of the gifts no matter how many or few they may be. 

When we use and develop the gifts that God gives to us, he gives us more gifts and calls us to higher tasks. 

Sloth, a capital sin, is totally incompatible with Christianity.

The reality of the Second Coming of Jesus does not permit us to be less concerned about our temporal duties.  Moreover, the trials of our times do not excuse the Christian to simply give up and retreat as if the Second Coming were imminent. 

Quoting Gaudium et Spes, one of the pinnacle documents of the Second Vatican Council, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: "Far from diminishing our concern to develop this earth, the expectancy of a new earth should spur us on, for it is here that the body of a new human family grows, foreshadowing in some way the age which is to come. That is why, although we must be careful to distinguish earthly progress clearly from the increase of the kingdom of Christ, such progress is of vital concern to the kingdom of God, insofar as it can contribute to the better ordering of human society."

As I explained clearly in my book Get Serious! – A Survival Guide for Serious Catholics, the laity are called to sanctify the temporal order. 

The primary involvement of the laity is not liturgical.

The temporal order is everything that exists outside of the parish church.  By their good works and their apostolic activity, the laity are called, through the Sacrament of Baptism, to bring Christ to the world.

As living members of the Church we must always be on fire for the Lord.  

The remedy for laziness or pessimism is to sit down with a sheet of paper and a pen.  Make a list of all of the wonderful gifts that God has given to you, thank him for these gifts and get to work. 

There is much to be done for the Kingdom!