DAILY- HOMILY

NOVEMBER 22, 2011
MEMORIAL, ST CECILIA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR
TUESDAY 34TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR I

Dn 2:31-45 / Dn 3:57, 58, 59, 60, 61 / Lk 21:5-11

DANIEL 2:31–45
Daniel said to Nebuchadnezzar, "In your vision you saw a statue—very
large, very bright, terrible to look at. Its head was of pure gold,
its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs
of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. As you
watched, a rock cut from a mountain but not by human hands, struck the
statue on its feet of iron and clay, smashing them. All at once the
iron, clay, bronze, silver and gold crumbled into pieces as fine as
chaff on the threshing floor in summer. The wind swept them off and
not a trace was left. But the rock that struck the statue became a
great mountain that filled the whole earth. "That was the dream. The
great God has shown the king what will happen in the future. The dream
is true and its interpretation reliable."

LUKE 21:5-11
While some people were talking about the Temple, remarking that it
was adorned with fine stonework and rich gifts, Jesus said to them,
"The days will come when there shall not be left one stone upon
another of all that you now admire; all will be torn down." And they
asked him, "Master, when will this be, and what will be the sign that
this is about to take place?" Jesus then said, "Take care not to be
deceived, for many will come claiming my title and saying: `I am he,
the Messiah; the time is at hand.' Do not follow them. When you hear
of wars and troubled times, don't be frightened; for all this must
happen first, even though the end is not so soon." And Jesus said,
"Nations will fight each other and kingdom will oppose kingdom. There
will be great earthquakes, famines and plagues; in many places strange
and terrifying signs from heaven will be seen."

REFLECTION
In today's Gospel Jesus predicts the destruction of Jerusalem and the
destruction of the world. He puts them together because the
destruction of Jerusalem was a symbol of the destruction of the world
and both catastrophes are signs announcing the second coming of Jesus.
For the apostles, Jesus' announcement of the destruction of the temple
of Jerusalem was a shock because the Temple was for a Jew the most
precious treasure on earth. Now, whenever we read in the Gospel Jesus'
prophecy of destruction and of his second coming, we run the risk of
getting the impression that he made these announcements in order to
frighten people. This is a great mistake. The purpose of Jesus'
announcement was not so much to proclaim destruction as to proclaim
salvation. Jesus did it not to frighten people but to give them
courage.

Neither the destruction of the Temple and of the world are the really
important points in the announcement of Christ. The important point is
his second coming, when he will come to reward his faithful people.
The destruction of Jerusalem and of the temple took place shortly
after Luke wrote his Gospel. The early Christians must have taken it
as a clear proof that what Jesus had prophesied was being fulfilled
and as an assurance that the rest of his words too would be fulfilled
to the last detail.

The second coming of Christ should not be taken as a frightening event
but as a joyful one, since it brings us salvation. Hence, the early
Christians did not look at it with fear. Instead, they longed for it.
Their daily prayer, both as individuals and as a community, as they
celebrated the Eucharist was: "Maranatha", an invocation in Aramaic,
which means: "Come, Lord Jesus." This should be our daily prayer as
well.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Linda O, Brian, Michael G, Rudy, Mary Ann R, Gene, Frank, Maureen,
Nick, Martha, Delores & Mary Ann
- Susan
… for the personal intentions of
- Josheil Dapo
- Rita P, Dana & Eugene R
- Cherie Torres
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Cecilia B. Garrucho
- Wedding Anniversary: Judith & Geraldo L. Yu
- In Memoriam (+): Yu Lim Giok Chang (1916-2005)+
- In Memoriam (+): Celso de las Alas
… for families who are in need of healing
… for world peace and reconciliation.

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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