The Living Word Is Jesus

Rev 20:1-4,11-21:2
Luke 21:29-33

The catecheism of the Catholic Church says that our religion is not that of books but the desire to do the will of God that lies in his word, and this word is not just mere word but the Word Incarnate-Jesus himself. The living Word is Jesus upon which God has set his seal. In our Gospel reading for today, while Jesus speaks to the people about the end times, he also gave them the parable of the fig tree. Nothing last forever. We only acquire the things we have. Heaven and earth will pass away but his words will never pass away.

In the midst of difficulty times, the Holy Spirit can make us appreciate better the word of God. In the hope of eternal life, we have the Word of God as a lamp for our feet and a light for our steps. Through, the word of God,
we can persevere in loving God and loving our neighbor, caring for the “least” of our brothers and sisters, and working for justice.

And then, further on, like a keyhole suddenly appearing, a gap in the lines of today’s psalm becomes apparent.  I have always loved the image of finding refuge in the word of God especially, that shelter of love which alone can respond to the longing of heart and flesh.

About the first reading, Scholars tell us that Revelation was composed as resistance literature to meet a crisis, most likely horrific persecution of the early church by Roman authorities.  In our own time we too are facing cataclysmic crises: a quick scan of headlines shows mass shootings, catastrophic earthquakes, mudslides, fires and hurricanes, war, species extinctions, political and climate refugees… What better time to walk together, companioning each other—both stranger and friend–through the valleys of grief, nourished by living water? Perhaps this is how we might write each other into the book of life.  Perhaps this is how we keep alive the memory of the Passion in our hearts.

Credit;
Fr Joseph Osho