RCIA: Week Six

In honor of Thanksgiving weekend, no RCIA session was held for November 26, 2006.

Old Testament:

As the visions during the night continued, I saw one like a son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven; when he reached the Ancient One and presented before
him, He received dominion, glory, and kingship; nations and peoples of every
language serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be
taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed." -- Daniel 7:13-14

New Testament:

"and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead and
ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our
sins by his blood, who has made us into a kingdom, priests for his God and
Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen. Behold, he is coming
amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. All the
peopls of the earth will lament him. Yes. Amen. 'I am the Alpha and the Omega,'
says the Lord God, 'the one who is and who was and who is to come, the
almighty.'" -- Revelation 1:5-8

Gospel:

"So Pilate went back into the praetorium and summoned Jesus and said to him,
'Are the King of the Jews?' Jesus answered, 'Do you say this on your own or have
others told you about me?' Pilate answered, 'I am not a Jew, am I? Your own
nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?' Jesus
answered, 'My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to
this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to
the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.' So Pilate said to him, 'Then
you are a king?' Jesus answered, 'You say I am a king. For this I was born and
for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to
the truth listens to my voice.'" -- John 18:33-37

In today's media, we often find ourselves hypnotized by the activities of royal families around the world or, in the US where there is no royal family, the activities of celebrities often regarded as royalty. Workplace conversations center around Angelina Jolie's latest humanitarian aid project. News networks report on the Queen of England's plan to visit the US next May to mark the 400th anniversary of the establishment of Jamestown. And gossip columnists routinely report on every detail of the lives of countless celebrities. But, in truth, we have a King who surpasses all earthly royalty and celebrity in goodness and glory: Jesus Christ. However, it isn't always easy to keep our priorities straight. We're human, and it's difficult not to think, at time, that people who seem beautiful and talented and elegant and charitible (despite their repeatedly reported flaws) who are seemingly admired by millions aren't worthy of our own admiration and worship of sorts. But we are told there is a greater power. In the Book of Revelations, John wrote to a people persecuted by the Roman Emperor Domitian for their refusal to burn incense in worship before his likeness. John bolstered the faith of his people, reminding them that their King is a king whose dominion was unlimited, crossing the divides of race and nationality, language, geography, and time. And so, on this day of the feast of Christ the King, we are asked, to whom do we give our allegiance? Do we worship at the altars of celebrities and materialism? Or do we bow to the King of Kings?

RCIA: Week Five

November 19, 2006
Due to illness (mine) Tom and I missed Mass and RCIA.

The Old Testament Reading:

"At that time there shall arise Michael, the great prince, guardian of your
people; It shall be a time unsurpassed in distress since nations began until
that time. At that time your people shall escape, everyone who is found written
in the book. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; Some
shall live forever, others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace. But the
wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, And those who lead
the many to justice shall be like the stars forever." -- Daniel 12:1-3

The New Testament Reading:

"Every priest stands daily at his ministry, offering frequently those same
sacrifices that can never take away sins. But this one offered one sacrifice for
sinces, and took his seat forever at the right hand of God; now he waits until
his enemies are made his footstool. For by one offering he has made perfect
forever those who are being consecrated. Where there is forgiveness of these,
there is no longer offering of sin." - Hebrews 11-4, 18

The Gospel Reading:

"But in those days after that tribulation the sun will be darkened, and the moon
will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the
powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see 'the Son of Man
coming in the clouds' with great power and glory, and then he will send out the
angels and gather [his] elect from the four winds, from the end of the eart to
the end of the sky. Learn a lesson froom the fig tree. When its branch becomes
tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when
you see these things happening, you know that he is near, at the gates. Amen, I
say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken
place. Hevean and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But of
that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but
the only the Father." - Mark 13:24-32

Many of us have experienced times in our lives when we have felt like our world was ending. Maybe a loved one passed away, an important relationship ended, a serious illness afflicted ourselves or a family member, or we found ourselves suddenly without a job. Such times are not pleasant. But the end of the world? That's...bad. It really isn't all that surprising that a lot of people -- including some very strong, faithful Christians -- shy away from it. No one likes to think of death -- much less the complete collapse of the world -- but at the end of the liturgical year, that is exactly what we are called to do.

The language contained in most readings related to the Apocalypse is forceful. From the unknown author of the Book of Daniel warning us that it will be a time of "unsurpassed" distress and that those who do not believe will be subjected to "everlasting horror and disgrace" to Mark telling us "the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken," the imagery is designed to be jarring, but, moreso, it is designed to help us address the present time in light of the end. In other words, we are supposed to be shaken up enough to start examining ourselves and making the necessary changes in our lives to be prepared for that moment which will determine our eternal future. (See how that works?)

But in addition to acting as a catalyst of change and forward momentum, apocalyptic passages are also designed to offer hope. When the Book of Daniel was written, the Jews were being oppressed by the Greeks, and many Jews were put to death since it was a crime to practice their faith. At the time of Saint Mark's words regarding the end times, his people faced persecution by the Roman Emperor Nero. So when the author of Daniel encourages the people to remain faithful with promises of everlasting life (the earliest reference to the resurrection of the dead) and when, in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus promises his disciples that he will come with power and glory to gather his believers, hope is offered. Furthermore, in the Letter to the Hebrews, the knowledge that God's sacrifice of his Son secured salvation for all of us is reaffirmed, and in the Gospel of Mark, the forceful imagery of the end times gives way to a lesson providing us with the advice to remain watchful (Surely we can do it...after all, people were standing watch for the birth of the Messiah from its first prophesy at least 600 years before its occurrence, and they didn't have the benefit of the promise of salvation.)

So, yes, one day, our lives of joy and sorrow will end, and one day our world will collapse, but God will be there to save us. We will survive.