33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Bullet Points (Luke 21:5-19)

• Today is the last Sunday of our Liturgical year. Next Sunday will be the feast of Christ the King, and that will officially end our liturgical year. Then comes the season of Advent- a season of preparation for Christmas. As the liturgical season comes to a close, the readings deal with the last things: the end of the world, judgment, reward, and punishment.

• The readings for this Sunday are important because they talk about the preparation we have to make for the final encounter with the Lord.

• First let us look at the situation: People were talking about the temple. They admired so much the beauty of the temple—how the temple was adorned with precious stones and votive offerings. Believe na believe sila sa templo. Syempre naman, sila ang gumawa, sila at nag-donate, and who could be prouder than they themselves. Gaya rin ng isang parishioner na nag donate ng upoan sa simbahan, believe na believe sa na-idonate nyang pew not because she gave it to the Lord, but because her name is printed on the side of the pew.

• Most often ipinagmamalaki natin ang mga bagay na ating ginagawa, chapels, decorations, altars, etc…but they can be erased in a matter of minutes…look at what happened after the flood, after the typhons, after the earthquakes… buildings were ruined… properties that we have been attached to for so long disappeared. Behind man’s efforts, man’s works, we should see God, and not only the material things that we see. The things that you see will pass. Di ba sinabi ng Panginoon:” Heaven and earth will pass away, but the WORDS of the Lord will last forever.

• In today’s gospel, Jesus tells his listeners: These things you are contemplating day will come when not one stone will be left on another? Na intriga ang mga tao, and so they asked: When will this happen, Teacher? And what will be the sign it is going to happen? Yan naman talaga ang usual concern of people ever since. Some would go to manghuhula, they would consult the crystal balls to know when the end of the world would be.

• But Jesus, before giving them a sign, warns them against being misled by false prophets. Nobody knows when the time will be. Wala tayong pakialam dyan. It’s only the Father knows when. Our concern is to prepare for that coming: To make a choice between good and evil.