October 27, 2016

Gospel: Lk 13:31-35
At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and gave him this warning, “Leave this place and go on your way, for Herod wants to kill you.” Jesus said to them, “Go and give that fox my answer: ‘I drive out demons, and I heal today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my course!’ Nevertheless, I must go on my way today, and tomorrow, and for a little longer; for it would not be fitting for a prophet to be killed outside Jerusalem.
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you slay the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often have I tried to bring together your children, as a bird gathers her young under her wings. But you refused! From now on, you will be left, with your temple. And you will no longer see me until the time when you will say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

REFLECTION:
Today’s first reading should be an eye-opener for some of us who go through life without being too much aware of what is going on around them—like sots who return home in a drunken stupor, unaware that they nearly got killed when crossing a street on a red light or that they are inadvertently foiling a hold-up or that they miss falling into a manhole.
To such Christians the apostle Paul in today’s first reading addresses a wake-up call. In substance he tells them something like this: “Hey! Our life on earth is not like a stroll in the park! We are involved in a cosmic war between the forces of evil and the forces of good, between Satan and his minions on the one hand and, on the other hand, God and his children. This means that, if we want to resist the forces of evil effectively, we have to be equipped adequately.” If we pay close attention to what Paul says afterwards, we notice that he insists very much on prayer as being of special importance in this war. And it is. Prayer connects us with the Cosmic Energy that moves the galaxies…