33rd Sunday Ordinary C/ Destruction of Jerusalem
  Mal. 3:19-20/ Ps 98/ 2 Thes 3:7-12/ Lk 21:5-19
  Introduction
 

          One of the most amazing natural phenomena is when a caterpillar begins to come out form its cocoon in the process called Metamorphosis to be a beautiful butterfly. It could mean the destruction of its old nature in order to present himself in a completely new form. We should be ready for the “destruction” of our old self, and wait patiently until we complete the process of achieving our new form as sons and daughters of Christ.

  
  Background
 
  1. The word “apocalyptic” is from the Greek word meaning “revelation” or “unveiling.” In the first reading Malachi used apocalyptic literature to unveil the truth that God is a God of justice. God will sweep away evil and evil doers so that those who are faithful will have a chance to live. The all-consuming fire Malachi speaks is that something new cannot begin unless something old is destroyed.

  2. The splendor of the Temple moves Jesus to prophesy. The temple pillars were columns of white marble, forty feet high and each made of one single clock of stone. Of the ornaments, the most famous was the great vine made of solid gold, each of whose clusters was as tall as a man. For the ancient writer Josephus “the outward face of the temple in its front wanted nothing that was like to surprise either men’s mind or their eyes, for it was covered with plates of heavy gold”

  3. Jesus prophesied the fall of Jerusalem. Jerusalem fell to the Roman armies in 70A.D. after a desperate siege in which the inhabitants were actually reduced to cannibalism and in which the city had to be taken literally stone by stone. Josephus says: that an incredible number of more than a million people perished in the siege and almost 97,000 were carried away into captivity. The Jewish nation was obliterated; and the Temple was fired and became desolation. Many frightening scenario marks the second coming of Christ. Jesus was sure that he was to come again and the earthly Church waited for that coming.
 
  Reflection:  
 
  1. The reasonable course of action left to us is to prepare ourselves from the ever-present danger of sudden death. Anyone can die at anytime. A study shows that 25 percent of heart attacks had no warning at all. People just drop dead. Add to this are traffic accidents, natural calamities and terrorist bombings that could happen anytime to anyone. Since anyone can die at anytime, so preparedness to meet God is absolutely necessary.

  2. Another fact that incites us to such preparedness is the reality aging. As time goes by the body gradually breaks down in preparation for the soul’s imminent liberation. A wise Christian should be able to read the signs of sudden change and decays in his bodily physique that tells him to prepare for his “great departure.” The good side of an old age is the solemn experience accelerated spiritual growth. As his outer skin wrinkled, his inner heart begins to grow in spiritual wisdom. Retirement could be an opportunity given by God to have enough time to pause and to reflect on his preparation for the eternal life that lies ahead.

  3. We also hear a paradoxical unity between “being put to death” and “not being harmed.” Maybe Jesus is just telling us that there is really no harm in dying, since death brings us into his arms. It marks the beginning of eternal joy, to be with our Beloved. Death is the end of our longing for the Divine.
 
  Conclusion  
 

         The destruction that happens to worms gives them the opportunity to be transform into new creature. Death and the End of time are not meant only to destroy us, but to transform us as into a kind of persons acceptable to God. As we prepare for Christ the King, our Scriptures today are telling us that the end of the world is not be feared by those faithful to God. We will all find our own ends, but some will continue to live in eternal happiness with God