Contents: Volume 2

33rd Sunday & CHRIST the KING

 - November 17, 2024 - November 24, 2024

1. -- Lanie LeBlanc OP - 32nd Sunday
2. -- Dennis Keller - CHRIST the KING
3. -- Fr. John Boll OP - 32nd Sunday
4. --
5. --(Your reflection can be here!)

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Sun 33 B 2024

We are indeed coming to the end of the liturgical year. For some, it may seem like things might be coming to the final end! The world and life as we know it is fraught with trials and tribulations, some simultaneously, some even just too distressing to consider except for a brief moment.

Each of us knows where we stand on that spectrum. Being in conversation with like-minded and supportive people helps a lot. What really helps in the end (no pun intended) are the words of Scripture that we can hold in our hearts and mind.

Hindsight tells us that God's promises are true. We have all survived many a troubling ordeal with the help of grace! Such will be our future.

In addition to the favorite Scripture quotes we many have, there are reminders in today's selections that can uplift us. We can count on the words "some shall live forever" in happiness with God plus "the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever." Let us continue to become wise in the ways of the Lord, continue to stand for justice in all we say and do, and reach out to people who at this moment in time, are terrified.

Blessings,
Dr. Lanie LeBlanc OP
Southern Dominican Laity
lanie@leblanc.one

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Solemnity of Christ the King

December 1, 2024

Daniel 7:13-14; Responsorial Psalm 93; Revelation 1:5-8;
Gospel Acclamation Mark 11:9 & 10; John 18:33-37

In many parts of the contemporary world, kingship has not been experienced. Governance by democratic principles cherishes the notion that leadership must be eligible to change at the will of the people governed. In that way poor leadership can be updated by the choices of the people. Obviously, elections are a great advantage since coups and revolution destroy a lot of infrastructure and consume acquired wealth for individuals and nations. Even worse, violent overthrows kill and maim large numbers of people. Such violence affects ordinary folk. The poor and working class are conscripted to serve in harm’s way and centers of population lose people and personal assets to death and destruction. Thus, domineering kingship is a serious danger to liberty. The idea of Jesus’ Kingship we celebrate this week-end may not find a welcome reception. Perhaps in our minds we reduce that kingship to thoughts of glitter and gold pomp and ceremony without any serious, positive impact on human life. By thinking of “kingship” as an honorary title we can keep it safe and lacking in impact on living.

Thinking of the Lord as a figure-head demanding adulation is awful! There is more to understanding the Kingship of Jesus as a ceremonial role. The ancient understanding of kingship (queen ship as well) is not about domination. It is certainly not about pomp and circumstance. It is no mere ceremonial, periodic event. In ancient times the one in charge, the one who was king/queen was the most competent in protecting and causing the tribe/nation to flourish. This was a heavy job, and one that required wisdom, energy, inspiration, and awareness of events and their effects on the people of his/her dominion. In the first reading we hear that Jesus – the one looking like a Son of Man –is given dominion by the Ancient One – that is God. Genesis presents God as giving dominion to all creation to the first among us – Adam and Eve. Added to the directive of God is a clarification of what that dominion means. There is a purpose to the command and that purpose is not for the benefit of Adam and Eve or their progeny. That authority is not for the purpose of subjugation. The purpose of God-given dominion is that humanity till and care for creation. This tilling and caring is to assist creation in flourishing. It is this flourishing that the Kingship of the Lord belongs to Jesus. When asked why he came into the world, Jesus’ response was straight forward: “That you may have life and have it more fully.” That’s a good definition of “flourishing.” Jesus’ work, his ministry, preaching, healing, challenging the way of the world as practiced by the Chief Priests, the Sadducees, and the power of Rome, is Jesus way of balancing the scales again in favor of creation’s flourishing. That flourishing is for the common good of all people AND all creation. You may have noticed a difference between domination and dominion. Domination is subjugation. Dominion is responsibility and authority in a specified area/region.

The reading from the Gospel of John is about the contest between Jesus and those religious and secular leaderships who live and practice the way of the world. Jesus is before Pilate after religious leadership has decided his fate. They weren’t permitted to execute anyone, so they went to the secular ruler whose favorite punishment was crucifixion. As Pilate questions Jesus he becomes frightened. Jesus claims Kingship but not the sort in which Pilate was a practitioner. How confusing this is for this secular ruler. Because Jesus claimed Kingship not in the way of the world, Pilate found himself facing a truth he couldn’t comprehend. Jesus’ dominion is not about enslavement. Certainly, the Hebrew’s history of experience as a people should have made that clear. Their founding as a nation came when the slavery of Pharoah buckled under to God’s liberating. The wandering tribes in their desert experience understood the bodily slavery from lack of food and water. As these tribes crossed over the Jordan into the promised land, they encountered resistance from those who had taken over the land. Years of wars fought under God’s protection led to liberation. After several attempts at treaties, the northern part of the Hebrew nation was captured and 4/5ths of that nation were exiled, sent out to the four winds. They remained among the Gentiles till after Pentecost. The southern Kingdom made horrific miscalculations and after a second devastating siege of Jerusalem most survivors were taken into exile to the cities of Babylon. After seventy plus years they were liberated from that slavery and urged to return to their land and rebuild the temple and Jerusalem. Then there came a successor to Alexander the Great. That successor captured Egypt and had been assigned Israel to govern. He decided the way to keep the conquered under control was to insist on all regions conquered should practice the same religion and the same culture. That meant worshipping man-made gods. There arose leadership by the Maccabees. That family was successful over a number of years of fighting against impossible odds to gain freedom of worship and governance. Over and over again, the message of the Hebrew Scriptures is slavery brought into liberation so that the people could flourish as a nation. In retrospect it appears that liberation for their faith was preparation for the Messiah, the one appearing as Son of Man.

Jesus by his ministry, by his preaching and healing brought freedom to many. In his healing he returned those broken and ostracized from their communities and families to full participation. His ministry fulfilled the prophecies of prophets in both the Northern and the Southern kingdoms. But his death, resurrection, and return to the Father challenged the slavery of tyrants and brought liberty to the hearts and minds of humanity. That freedom is available through Jesus’ work and encourages us to flourish. That flourishment is beyond wealth, power, and fame. That flourishment brings us to freedom and delivers us from slavery. This may sound like a pipedream. But it is the truth of human existence. We are not mere physical bodies with an advanced brain. There is more to us than that. It’s when our character – the very depth of who each of us uniquely is – grows that we are truly free, truly liberated, truly whole. Wholeness is holiness. Spiritual wholeness is relative to the uniqueness of the person that each of us has from the Creator.

Celebrating the Kingship of Jesus can mean celebrating the liberation and healing that allows us to participate in the community of humanity. Jesus is given dominion, that is responsibility to care for each of us and bring us healing, liberation, and wholeness. Jesus is not so much a boss as he is a companion who teaches, who supplies us with the Holy Spirit to inspire us to goodness, who heals what becomes broken in our spirits. And then welcomes us into the gates of the heavenly City – the new and eternal Jerusalem. And we shouldn’t forget that our baptism which brings into the Community of the King -- that baptism makes us priests, prophets, and kings/queens. This last the kings and queens part makes us like shepherds caring for each other.

Dennis Keller Dennis@PreacherExchange.com

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2024-11-17 Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

Daniel 12: 1-3; Hebrews 10: 11-14, 18; Mark 13: 24-32

I have Good News for you!
The world is coming to an end!
Yea-hhh

Aren’t you ecstatic!
I bet you are really looking forward to it?

For me, this word seems more like the “Not so Good News!”
It always makes me a bit nervous.

The tribulation is certainly not what I hope for!
And the lights all going out,
do not seem like much fun either!

Darkness, cold, cataclysm,

Before I drown in this Apocalyptic Horror film,
We should notice a number of clues
as to what is really going on here.

I’ll start with something subtle, stated at the end:
“But of that day no one knows,
neither the Angels in Heaven,
Nor the Son.
But only the Father.”

I can get the Angels not knowing,
but the Son?...
Isn’t he God? ... who knows everything?

Why is it Only the Father knows?

Jesus is using an image from the Wedding customs of his day.
His listeners would pick up on this.
Once the betrothal is celebrated,
(more than engagement, less than wedding -
there is now a promise that will be fulfilled)

The Son’s task, the Groom, is to prepare a place for his Bride.
The Father’s task is to decide when the Son/ the Groom is ready. The Groom must prepare a place (a home) for his bride,
When Father determines all is ready
the Father sends the Son is to go and get his Bride!
And then, the celebration will begin!

Just as Jesus tells the disciples in his farewell speech in John 14;
“Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You have faith in God; have faith also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If there were not, would I have told you
that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
so that where I am you also may be.”

But there is even more in the veiled language of this Gospel,
(coded to so only the believers would understand.)

"Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.”

Of what is this an image?
An image of what it will be like when the time comes...
An image of the end of winter and the coming of Spring!
Don’t you just love spring?
The cold, dreary days are gone
Plants sprout,
flowers bloom,
the mosquitoes have not come out yet
and the temperature is wonderful
Only rejoicing here!

The the gospel says:
“In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.”
He Who?
Remember the 10 bridesmaids from Matthew 25?
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom....
At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’”
They do not know when he will arrive, but have been preparing
Having that extra oil, they keep those lamps burning!
Again – it is the wedding celebration,
A time of excitement and great rejoicing!

How about the part?
“and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”
No one who has chosen to be with him will be left out!
So do not worry!

Finally what about the lights?
“the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.”

So hear this from the Book of Revelation 22: 5
- the Apocalypse.
“ Night will be no more, nor will they need light from lamp or sun, for the Lord God shall give them light, and they shall reign forever and ever.”

So what if the lights will be going out,
In the end they are no longer needed,
because in you... light itself will dwell!

So Maybe,
For all those who wait for him,
Our Divine Groom, Jesus Christ---
This IS Good News after all!

Fr. John Boll, OP

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Volume 2 is for you. Your thoughts, reflections, and insights on the next Sundays readings can influence the preaching you hear. Send them to preacherexchange@att.net. Deadline is Wednesday Noon. Include your Name, and Email Address.
 

-- Fr. John

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