Luke 21: 5-11
When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.”
They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” And he said, “Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is near!’ Do not go after them.
“When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
What Will Matter in the End?
When a person is stuck between two choices St. Ignatius, in the Spiritual Exercises, invites them to imagine themselves on their deathbed and ask: If I were there now, would I wish I had chosen this thing or that thing? It’s a powerful clarifying exercise. Similarly, the Gospel today is directing us to focus on the “end things.” Not to frighten us or draw our attention to cataclysmic events or predictions about when the world will end, but to turn our hearts toward what truly matters.
How would being on our deathbed clarify what really matters in our life? Likewise, when we stand before God at the end of time, what will matter? What are those things that God deems lasting and worthy? Thus the Gospel asks us, what are we clinging to that cannot save us? And what keeps us from entrusting ourselves more fully to God? As we let go of what passes away, even the good things in our life, we open our hands, and our hearts, to receive what is eternal.
—Benjamin Rogers, SJ, is a Jesuit scholastic of the Midwest Province studying philosophy at Loyola University Chicago.
Prayer
Lord, I do not know the hour nor the day when you will call me home, and so I ask that you grant me the grace to remain vigilant for you, Lord, always seeking and striving to do your will. Help me remain steadfast in prayer, in devotion, in faith, hope, and charity; these are the truly lasting and permanent things. Strengthen me, Lord, that I may persevere to the end in love.
—Benjamin Rogers, SJ
Pray with the Pope
Pray with the monthly prayer intentions of the pope.