Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Scripture Readings

I was having a difficult day the other day. And in pure desperation I said to myself, “Church is hard! There better be a heaven!” And really, some days are like that, isn’t it? It is not only desperation, frustration, and impatience with situations, but there are times in our lives when we feel that life is closing in on us. And sometimes it really does. We have all experienced death and dying of someone we love. At that moment, in those times, we say, “There better be a heaven!” Fortunately, there is! 

Today’s scripture readings are about resurrection and eternal life. Here are my three points for today. 

God of the Living

“There better be a heaven!” Fortunately, there is. But this was not always the case. In today’s gospel reading, Luke introduces us to a Jewish sect called the Sadducees. The Sadducees were a Jewish priestly sect that flourished for about two centuries before the destruction of the SecondTemple of Jerusalem in 70 The Sadducees and Pharisees were in constant conflict with each other. The main difference between them was that the Sadducees refused to go beyond the written Torah (first five books of the Bible) They rejected the entire oral tradition that followed the Torah. More importantly, unlike the Pharisees, they also denied the immortality of the soul and bodily resurrection after death. 

Thus, when they came to Jesus and presented the bizarre case of the woman married to seven brothers as each of them died in succession, they were not presenting a real-life situation. They had created a hypothetical conundrum to impress Jesus with the utter fallacy of the concept of life after death. Little did they realize that they were talking the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and Jacob. Little did they realize that they were talking to God, “…not of the dead but of the living.” 

Today, I want us to realize that we are in the presence of God, “not of the dead but of the living”. If that was not the case, this gathering is would not be a faith-gathering but just another social gathering. 

I would like us to take a moment of silence… and consciously and intentionally put ourselves in the presence of the God, “not of the dead, but of the living.”

Jesus - Our Resurrection and Life

Today’s scripture readings also connect us to a significant moment in Judaic history that shows the development of the explicit belief in resurrection and life after death. In the second reading from 2 Maccabees, one of the brothers said before his martyrdom, "You are depriving us of this present life, but the King of the world will raise us up to live again forever.” Yet another brother said, "It is my choice to die at the hands of men with the hope God gives of being raised up by him; but for you, there will be no resurrection to life." 

Last Wednesday, on All Soul’s Day, I posted on Facebook that if people mentioned names of their departed loved ones, I would remember them at Mass that day. By the end of the day, there were more than 300 comments posting hundreds of names. 

It says a few things to me. First, it is a testimony of our love for our beloved departed. We are people who cherish our history. We are a people who cherish our beloved. Death hurts. Grief is real. It also says that grief is best addressed with faith. Grieving without faith can lead us to despair. Faith makes our grieving a hope-filled process. But most importantly, it showcases our faith in the God “not of the dead but of the living”. We believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and we believe in the God who sent us Jesus. 

However, our faith goes far beyond what the Maccabees could have ever imagined. Our faith goes beyond even what the Pharisees believed in Jesus’ time. We believe that Jesus is our resurrection and our life. We believe that Jesus entered death and by his resurrection transformed death into the way to life eternal. We believe that Jesus isthe God not of dead but of the living. 

Let us take another meditative moment to affirm our faith in Jesus as our resurrection and our life.

Preparing for Our Death

As much as we grieve our beloved dead and believe in the God not of the dead but of the living, we know that one day we too will die. And when that happens, the one thing we do not have to worry about is our destiny. Yes, death still carries a sting. But the God of the living has secured eternity for us. 

Meanwhile what shall we do? How do we prepare for that day? Call it an irony or a paradox, but the best way to prepare for our death is to focus on living. There is a possibility that on the day we die, we will be only as ready and prepared as we are today. 

Let us take a moment to reflect on our lives. I am sure that in many areas of our lives we are living good and holy lives. And if there are areas that need some work and preparation, let us seeks God’s help, so that if death happens even now, we will not find ourselves in need. 

Christ who is our life, our hope, and our resurrection; Christ, who is God not of the dead but of the living will be on this altar in a few moments. Let us offer him our most profound gratitude and homage. Amen.

- Fr. Satish Joseph