"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.
What do we do when the world around us is shaken, when structures that have hitherto supported us are taken away?
“Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain (see Hebrews 12:26-27).
God sometimes permits those things which seem to be the most basic, primary, and unalterable aspects of our reality to be taken away. Without the normal sources of light, how will we navigate, or to what will we look for guidance? When religious leaders speak without clarity, when governments serve only the self-interest of the few, when even the supposedly enlightened espouse violence and conflict, how will we ourselves find our bearings amidst such a cacophony?
So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” (see John 12:35-36).
Let us learn to walk by the light of Christ, to believe in that light, and to become thereby sons and daughters of light. Then we ourselves will be like the wise who "shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament." We will be like "those who lead the many to justice [who] shall be like the stars forever."
We need to cultivate the coherence between our light and the source of light, the one who is to come. The experience of this coherence casts out our fear of the Son of Man and of his coming. Instead we begin look to his signs with eager expectation, believing and hoping that summer is near.
See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me (see Song of Songs 2:11-13).
Without this coherence between the light in ourselves and Jesus, light of the world, we will invariably be thrown into chaos along with the world when supports are removed and things begin to shake. It will become even more difficult in such a condition and at such times to look to the coming of the Son of Man for we will feel ourselves identified with the darkness, with the temporary things that must give way to those which are eternal. But with the light of Christ in our hearts we will go out to meet him "at the gate", like wise virgins, with our lamps fueled and shining.
How then are we to cultivate the light within us? It is not a matter of esoteric practices or secret spiritual disciplines. It is a rather a matter of keeping near to Jesus now in all of the ways in which he is present with us: in our brothers and sisters, in Scriptures, and in Sacrament. We can learn from the first reading to avail ourselves of the help of "Michael, the great prince" and, along with him, of the other angels who gather us together from the four winds. Even now we rely on a unity that, although it seems quite fragile, has a supernatural origin with its focal point found in the celebration of the Mass.
In recent years many things have been and continue to be darkened and dislodged, shaken and uncertain. But the victory of Jesus is not among them. It is as inevitable as the dawn, as certain as the coming of summer after spring.
now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool.
For by one offering
he has made perfect forever those who are being consecrated.
Let us root ourselves in Christ more and more. Let his consecration define us and perfect us so that he himself can be our light and our surety when nothing else seems firm or certain.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
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