(Sunday 10th November
2019. Bible Study: 2 Maccabees 7:1-14, Psalm 17, 2nd Thess. 2:16-3:5 & Luke
20:27-38)_
_“The sons
of this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are accounted worthy
to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor
are given in marriage, for they cannot die any more. *(Luke 20:34-36)*_
Last Sunday,
we read how Jesus sought to save sinners by showing love to them. In the
example of Zacchaeus, we see that God does not hate what He has made but
continues to speak to us through our conscience. In today’s readings, we hear
God speak once again to our conscience by reminding us of the inevitability of
our death.
The story
of the seven brothers and their Mother particularly teaches us that death is
only a beginning and not an end. In responding to the question posed by the Sadducees,
Jesus explains the details of life after death. As always, there are some
lessons to learn from today’s readings.
*1. It is
Better to Die Than to Sin Against God.*
In this
moving story of the martyrdom of the seven brothers, we see our own story as Christians
in this age and time. Whether we like it or not, there is a fierce persecution
ravaging the body of Christ today; a battle between sin and righteousness. Like
these seven brothers, Christians today are forced, tortured and cajoled on
every side to make choices which are clearly against their faith but as Jesus
would advise: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul;
rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28). The
martyrs clearly understood this teaching and applied it faithfully in their
life.
The
gruesome martyrdom of these brothers reminds me of the story of the 14year old
Vivian Ogu who was shot dead by armed robbers for refusing to allow them rape
her. I recall also Leah Sharibu who has been reportedly killed by Boko Haram terrorists
for refusing to renounce her faith as a condition for her release. The martyrs
are the true heroes of our faith. By reflecting on their lives, we gain courage
to resist the devil whenever we are being tempted to sin. As he at his last breath,
one of the brothers said: “you dismiss us from this present life, but the king
of the universe will raise us up to an everlasting renewal of life.”
The only
way we can make sense of this present life (with all its injustice and evil) is
to bear in mind that there is another life much better than this life. Jesus
teaches us: “For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses
his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a
man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in
return for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this
adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed,
when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:35-38).
It is pure foolishness if we disobey God for fear of losing this life only to
end up losing eternal life in the long run.
*2. The
Saints are not Simply Dead People.*
It may
surprise you to know that there are many so-called Christians today who firmly
hold the doctrine of the Sadducees that there is no resurrection of the dead. By
referring to the saints as just dead people, they reveal their fundamental belief
that death is simply the end and they back it up by scriptural passages such as:
“And just as it is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment.”
(Hebrews 9:27).
As we can
see, Jesus already gave a response to anyone who thinks there is no life after
death: “But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about
the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the
God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to
him. (Luke 20:37-38). One of the pillars of the Christian Faith is belief in
the resurrection of the dead. We are Christians because we believe Christ rose
from the dead and that like Him, we too shall rise to another life when we die.
We ask the
saints to intercede for us because we believe they are fully alive in the life
that Jesus speaks about in today’s Gospel passage. One person who was privileged
to visit heaven and see those who had died is John the Apostle and he wrote his
experience in a book called “Revelations.” John tells us: “These are they who
have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, are they before the throne of
God, and serve him day and night within his temple; and he who sits upon the
throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither
thirst any more; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the
Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them
to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
(Revelation 7:14-17).
*3. The
Celibate State is a Pointer to the Resurrected Life.*
To prove
that there is no resurrection from the dead, the Sadducees cooked up a very
logical story; one that was intended to put Jesus in a tight corner. Nevertheless,
their story also revealed their total misunderstanding of resurrection as a return
to the flesh or a re-living of this present life. Jesus saw where they missed
the point and he corrected them saying “those who are accounted worthy to
attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are
given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to
angels and are sons of God. (Luke 20:35-36)
Already
from the above, John reveals to us that in that life, there shall be no more
hunger, no more thirst, no more heat because of the presence of the Lamb in whose
midst they dwell. (Cf. Rev. 7:16-17) This means that in the resurrected life,
there shall be no bodily feelings such as the longing for sexual pleasure, the
feeling of loneliness or the desire for companionship. Furthermore, Jesus adds
that “they cannot die anymore” meaning that in the resurrected life, there is
absolutely no need for procreation (children to carry one’s name onwards). In
the resurrected life, we shall all be celibates.
Celibacy is
a sign. It is by itself a form of evangelization. As powerful as the sexual
drives may be, the fact that there are people who live very happy and fulfilled
lives without sex should teach us a lesson; that we are more than animals; that
happiness in life can only be found in union with God and in obedience to His
commandments. As Jesus says: “there are eunuchs who have made themselves
eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 19:12).
*4. Pray
for Your Spiritual Leaders.*
One great
saint said: “Behind every priest (or man of God) is a devil working very hard
for his downfall.” Our final lesson today comes from our second reading where we
hear St. Paul asking the Thessalonians to pray for him and the other apostles: “Finally,
brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed on and triumph, as
it did among you, and that we (who are
doing God’s work) may be delivered from wicked and evil men; for not all have
faith.” (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2).
Oftentimes,
we tend to forget that our Pope, Bishops, Priests, Religious and Ministers are
much in need of our prayer than we are. If we struggle to be holy, we must
realize that those who have given their lives to God’s work struggle harder. If
we face temptations, we must bear in mind that they face stronger temptations because
the devil knows how much potential they possess in the destruction of souls. If
a Christian falls, he may simply be laughed at but when the man of God falls,
hundreds fall with him. This is why we must make efforts every day to pray for
them.
As we can
see, St. Paul explains the reason why we must pray for our spiritual leaders:
that “we may be delivered from wicked and evil men; for not all have faith.”
This is absolutely correct. There are many who seek to be close friends to the
priest but have very deadly missions to accomplish. Then there are those who simply
do not believe in God yet flock around the priest just to distract him from the
faith. If we hear of scandals, we must not be too quick to condemn or share
with our friends on social media, we must drop down on our knees and pray for
them.
No priest
or sister is superhuman. There is no amount of seminary formation or religious
training that makes a person become a god yet, somehow we live as gods among people.
Within a twenty-four period, a priest may have done adoration, joined a couple
at mass, blessed a car, visited the sick in the hospital, heard confessions,
performed anointing and even bury a person. Perhaps while he is about to rest,
he remembers there is a birthday celebration he had been invited to. He rushes
there smiling, but no one knows he buried someone that same day. We work round
the clock attending to our flock, praying hard for them and we forget to pray
for ourselves. Without your prayers, we just cannot be who we are meant to be.
*Conclusion*
There is life
after death. Hence, we cannot mourn like unbelievers. We know that death is
just a gateway to another life that is hundred times more glorious than the
present life so we must strive to be saints even if it means losing our last
drop of blood. In the life to come, we shall be celibates and the celibate
state is a pointer to this reality. Nevertheless, we must pray for our spiritual
leaders who show us to God that God may dwell in them because no one can give
what he does not have.
Let us
pray: Lord Jesus, make me wise enough to fear sin more than death. Amen.
Happy
Sunday. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless
you. (Thirty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year C. Bible Study: 2 Maccabees 7:1-14,
Psalm 17, 2nd Thess 2:16-3:5 & Luke 20:27-38.).
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