Carpathian mountain valley
A Daily Reflection on the Scripture Readings at Mass…
Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Lo, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:20-21)
In these troubling days of sin and scandal, in these moments when civility has become a lost art, in these times when both country and church seem divided beyond recognition and healing, we may be tempted to seek answers in the wrong places and even to ask the wrong questions.
Certainly the motivation for some if not many of the Pharisees in today’s gospel is self-serving, they ask a question that we may seek answers to as well. We maybe long for the “good ole days” or possibly become obsessed with the future coming of wrath and chastisement. Maybe we find ourselves simply lashing out and finding fault with others. We, too, need to evaluate our motivation.
Jesus tells us that the Kingdom is among us. The fact is that whenever the Church finds itself in a crisis of its own making or a crisis from outside, God raises up heroes, great saints who lead the Church forward to holiness and healing. The hard truth is that each of us needs to tend to our own holiness. God might have plans for you that you cannot imagine at this moment because you think you already know what you should do. This is why Saint Teresa of Ávila taught her sisters that it is necessary to spend much time in the rooms of humility.
In humility, be at peace and let the Lord form you in His Kingdom.
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