Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
he second reading for today comes from the Letter to the Hebrews and is a portion of chapter 11, often known as the “Hall of Faith.” In it the author recounts the obedient faith of our forerunners. We hear about the faith of Abraham, the father of faith. Abraham believed God and left his country even in his old age. He trusted that God would provide him an heir, even though he and his wife were beyond childbearing years. God miraculously provided an heir for Abraham, and then asked Abraham to sacrifice his only beloved son. The early rabbis saw in the faith of Abraham during the binding of Isaac for sacrifice, an image of hope in the resurrection. This is because Isaac was given back to Abraham. God did not allow Abraham to complete the sacrifice and kill his son. Rather, God spared Isaac, and thus his life was in a sense restored.
In today’s Gospel reading we see Jesus encourage His disciples to have faith in waiting for His return. He is instructing them to be constantly vigilant, remaining prepared for His return at any and every moment. We must always live our lives as if each moment were the last. We must never omit to do the good required of us at any given moment, having our final end in sight. Jesus will return at the end of the age, and He returns at every celebration of the Mass. At an individual level, we do not know when we will take our final breath and encounter our Lord for the first time in eternity. Thus we must be constantly vigilant awaiting the coming of the Lord in faith, in hope, and in love.
Taking our cues from the faith of our fathers like Abraham and our mothers, especially Holy Mary Ever Virgin, the mother of faith, we can strive to live lives worthy of the name Christian, pouring ourselves out as offerings to God. We must follow the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Jesus our Saving Lord, in transforming our own lives into gifts to be given to others. This is the faith God is calling us to, to be gifts to others. This is the vigilance we are called to have, in the few large and heroic moments of our lives, but also every day in all of the quotidian little things of daily life. Let us await our Master’s return with hearts filled with faith, hope, and love.
Jeff Morrow