‘THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED …

 

‘THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED …

… and the moon will lose its brightness.’ These are hard-to-handle words of Jesus in Mark chapter 13. What did he mean? Well, any of us can come with their suggestion. I don’t think the words are to be taken literally. It seems to me he was indicated great drama at the end of time. The ‘boundary’ between heaven and earth, as we understand them, will disappear. What we take as ‘normal’ will disappear. The kingdom of God will finally and completely ‘overtake’ us. The Son of Man will appear in his power and glory and ‘gather’ his people.

As we approach the end of another year, we are given readings that encourage us to be steadfast and persevere, even if they are strange. After a long jail sentence, we will finally be free. We are moving towards a fulfilment not only of what we desire but – far more – what we cannot even dream about now. These are lofty thoughts, drawn from the Book of Revelation and other texts especially the Prophecy of Daniel about the ‘Son of Man’ (7:13).  But, to come down to earth for a moment, we can at least understand the word ‘gather’.

Quite a lot of ‘scattering’ goes on in the scriptures and in our life. The Jews were exiled and scattered among the nations and, at the Passion, all Jesus’ disciples were scattered (Mk 14:27). Families scatter as children move away from home to look for opportunities. The sick and aged move from their familiar surroundings and often end up in a lonely corner where few visit them. We can be ‘far from home’ in so many ways. Even personally, we can be ‘scatter brained’, failing to concentrate and we end up aimless and frustrated.

Jesus gathers his people ‘from every tribe and tongue and people and nation’ (Rev 5:9) into the kingdom of his Father. He does it now when he finds a ‘lost sheep’ far from home and yearning for belonging. He does it through us when we reach out to the poor and lonely, the sick, the orphans and the disabled. And there are the migrants, the displace and the abused. He will gather them.

The apocalyptic (revelation) readings we hear as the year closes, alert us in startling language, that ‘the time is near’. The twigs on the fig tree grow supple and the leaves come out. It is a sign that he is near, ‘right at the gates.’ 

It is helpful and healthy to live in expectation, ready to be surprised, awake and alert, like a bird pecking in the grass but with one eye out for the cat or the hawk. ‘Stand ready’ is the constant message of this time of the year.

17 November 2024    Sunday 33B    Dan 12:1-3    Heb 10:11-18    Mk 13:24-32