Daily Retreat 08/31/09
2009 Aug 31 Mon:Ordinary Weekday
1 Thes 4: 13-18/ Ps 95(96): 1 and 3. 4-5. 11-12. 13/ Lk 4: 16-30
From today’s readings: “For the Lord Himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from Heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.... The Lord comes to judge the earth.... Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing....”
A Peak at the End
An essential aspect of Christian belief is preparation for the Parousia, the Second Coming of Christ. Our Lord Himself warned us that we must “be prepared” (cf. Gospel from last Thursday), but He refused to give details about time and place. Nowadays, it’s common for us to operate under the assumption that the Parousia is too far off for us to be overly concerned about it, but such a lackadaisical attitude is never fitting for faithful followers of Christ, as the liturgies of Christ the King and Advent warn us!
Another error to avoid, though, is such an urgent preoccupation with the Parousia that it grows into a psychosis that wreaks havoc in our day-to-day life. This is what was starting to happen with some of the Thessalonians - they worried that those who had already died would miss the Parousia, and some of them even concluded that the imminent coming of the Lord was a reason to lay aside any gainful employment. Paul corrects these misconceptions, telling them to keep working (this blunt reminder appears several times throughout both letters to the Thessalonians), and don’t worry about those who have died being short-changed in any way! Good advice then, good advice now - let us console one another with these words
1 Thes 4: 13-18/ Ps 95(96): 1 and 3. 4-5. 11-12. 13/ Lk 4: 16-30
From today’s readings: “For the Lord Himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from Heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.... The Lord comes to judge the earth.... Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing....”
A Peak at the End
An essential aspect of Christian belief is preparation for the Parousia, the Second Coming of Christ. Our Lord Himself warned us that we must “be prepared” (cf. Gospel from last Thursday), but He refused to give details about time and place. Nowadays, it’s common for us to operate under the assumption that the Parousia is too far off for us to be overly concerned about it, but such a lackadaisical attitude is never fitting for faithful followers of Christ, as the liturgies of Christ the King and Advent warn us!
Another error to avoid, though, is such an urgent preoccupation with the Parousia that it grows into a psychosis that wreaks havoc in our day-to-day life. This is what was starting to happen with some of the Thessalonians - they worried that those who had already died would miss the Parousia, and some of them even concluded that the imminent coming of the Lord was a reason to lay aside any gainful employment. Paul corrects these misconceptions, telling them to keep working (this blunt reminder appears several times throughout both letters to the Thessalonians), and don’t worry about those who have died being short-changed in any way! Good advice then, good advice now - let us console one another with these words
posted by FrPitstick | 8/27/2009
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