Saturday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time Yr 2 2024 BVM
Ordinary Time • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 3 viewsOften our discussions are caught in a this-age earthly perspective, but our texts show John seeing things from a heavenly perspective in which two figures speak with the power of God but are in God’s time killed in the “holy” city that is really Sodom and Egypt, just as their Lord was. And they show Jesus taking the traditionalist this-world-bound perspective of the Sadducees and flipping it to show marriage limited to this world where procreation is needed and the resurrection goal being one of being like angels and being children of God. So we have to raise our eyes to God’s perspective and live from that perspective as children of God, living from the deeper reality.
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Title
Title
Raising Our Eyes Above
Outline
Outline
Last Sunday our family was discussing MAID
Last Sunday our family was discussing MAID
What struck me was that both in the workshop that our daughter had attended and in our discussion of actual cases, God was not mentioned nor the afterlife nor the final judgment (except by me). It was all this-worldly: quality of life, avoiding pain, and human choice.
Our readings give us a different perspective.
Revelation gives a different perspective on a historical situation.
Revelation gives a different perspective on a historical situation.
There are, in a reference to Zech ch 4 two olive trees, in Zechariah Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor (who was in the Davidic line), so a priestly and a ruling person, who speak with the authority of the Lord, who speak prophetic words that can “slay” their enemies. But the world does not see them that way, for “the beast” (Domitian) will kill them in Jerusalem, but those with spiritual eyes see “Sodom” and “Egypt”, corruption and oppression. But what the world sees as victory is cut short when they are resurrected and ascend to the presence of God. My point is that what the world sees and what the prophet see are quite different, even different names of things.
Jesus is presented with a conundrum by traditionalist Jews
Jesus is presented with a conundrum by traditionalist Jews
These only accepted the Torah as authoritative and did not see any evidence of resurrection in it but did accept levirate marriage. So, taking an situation as in Tobit (a woman married fruitlessly to seven relatives), they point to the impossible situation this would cause in a resurrection.
Jesus flips their perspective. First, he points to a verb tense in Exodus that indicates that the Patriarchs are alive to God, but, second, he points out that marriage and procreation are only for this age when they are needed, so no solution to the problem is needed, for those worthy of “the age to come” are “like angels” for they are “children of God”. So instead of looking to the past with this age eyes Jesus looks above and into the future with the perspective of God.
So, Sisters, we need to raise our perspective
So, Sisters, we need to raise our perspective
We have to get our eyes in union with Jesus’. Rather than grasping the sword, a worldly means, we will speak a divine word. Rather than being impressed even with a great holy city, we may see “Sodom” and “Egypt.” Rather than fearing death from “the beast” we will see our imitating Christ in ascension to heaven. Rather than concern about marriage and family, we will realize that ultimately that and a lot of stuff of this age will not matter.
We need to live with the perspective of the children of God and realize God’s life in us, for he is the God of the living, not of the dead.