Readings: Dan 12:1-3; Heb 10:11-14, 18; Mk 13:24-32
In the Gospel reading today, our Lord instructs us to learn a lesson from the fig tree. In the area of Israel where Jesus spoke, the people could look at the branches of the tree becoming tender and sprouting leaves to know that summer was near. He tells us that in the same way, when we see, after a time of tribulation, the sun being darkened, the moon failing to give its light, the stars falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens being shaken, that we should be able to infer that He is near, even at the gates.
These are events that will happen at the end of the world. However, these are events that also mark the end of ages or eras that prefigure the events that will take place at the end of the world. Think back, for instance, when our Lord was crucified. The sun was darkened for several hours. This was not an eclipse of the sun. We can know this in two ways. First, it was Passover which occurs at the time of a full moon. There cannot be an eclipse during a full moon. Second, the longest an eclipse can occur is just over eight minutes, and this lasted several hours.
We are not told about what happened to the moon and the stars when our Lord was crucified, but we can definitely state that the powers in the heavens were shaken. Of course, we know that our Lord was at the gate, but most of the people completely missed that. Jesus told His disciples that the things about which He spoke would be fulfilled in that generation. And so it was. We just addressed what happened at the crucifixion in AD 33, but Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. It was not the end of the world, but the end of an era and a prefiguration of what will happen when the end does arrive.
Today we have many people who are looking at what is going on in the world and believing we are near the end. As it was in AD 33, I believe we are nearing the end of an era, not the end of the world. We are going to witness the crucifixion of the Church. I trust that this event will be heralded by signs similar to what were seen when our Lord was crucified. We are going to see the rise of evil, as occurred in Jerusalem between the time of our Lord and the time the Romans destroyed her. We will see a time of tribulation that will be a time of testing for everyone. Finally, we will see the resurrection and glorification of the Church.
Many people tend to feel fear and panic when they hear of these things, but we not only have our Lord and the Apostles telling us not to be afraid or anxious (Scripture states “Be not afraid” 365 times, one for each day), we also have promises like the one in the first reading where we are told that in a time of unsurpassed distress, St. Michael, the guardian of the people, will arise. St. Michael is the Guardian of Israel, but He is also the Guardian of the Church. When we look at the Book of Revelation, we notice the angels on nearly every page. This means the angels are going to be very active in these times.
Of course, you have a Guardian Angel who is with you always. As a member of the Church and a child of the Lord, your angel is going to be very solicitous toward you. For the most part, our angels do not need to manifest themselves very often; they do their work quietly and in a hidden manner. When there is a greater necessity, they will act in ways that are far more perceptible to us. If that is the case in our day-to-day life, we can only assume our Holy Angel will make himself known to us in a way we will be able to recognize so we can cooperate.
As we know, the word angel means a messenger. Their task is to impart to us knowledge of God’s will for us. Not only will our angels be helping us, protecting us, and guiding us, they will also be reminding us of the message of hope that many of us will desperately need in the midst of the trials that are to come. Our only hope is the Lord and the sacrifice He offered for us, as we see in the second reading today. Through these trials, He will be perfecting us who have been consecrated. Do not be afraid. Listen to your angel, obey him, pray, and remain close to and faithful to Jesus.
Fr. Altier’s column appears regularly in The Wanderer, a national Catholic weekly published in St. Paul, Minn. For information about subscribing to The Wanderer, please visit www.thewandererpress.com.
