Yes all of us, not one of us will be spared from judgement by the Lord our God of Heaven and on earth. When we do not know! Yesterday at my community prayer meeting a member shared that she had just returned from a wake of fifteen year old girl who was faithful and full of life before she mysteriously fell sick and returned to our Lord. Then I recalled a visit to the columbarium where I chanced upon the inscriptions of babies, toddlers and youths! Death does not distinguish between the ages. Should we then wait in fear?
No! We turn with all our hearts to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He who makes all things new will renew the face of the earth when He comes again. We turn to Him now so that we will be transfigured by His merciful grace to live in the light of His resurrection. And if we die, we know without an inkling of doubt that we will rise again in Him. Let us cherish the Word of God made flesh and keep His Word and will of us, just as Mary our Blessed Mother did. For it is written that she ‘treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart’ (Luke 2.19) Let then rejoice for we are the just in the Lord! Amen
First reading
Joel 4:12-21 ·
The day of the Lord is near; sun and moon grow dark
The Lord says this:
‘Let the nations rouse themselves, let them march
to the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
for I am going to sit in judgement there
on all the nations round.
Put the sickle in:
the harvest is ripe;
come and tread:
the winepress is full,
the vats are overflowing,
so great is their wickedness!’
Host on host
in the Valley of Decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the Valley of Decision!
Sun and moon grow dark,
the stars lose their brilliance.
The Lord roars from Zion,
makes his voice heard from Jerusalem;
heaven and earth tremble.
But the Lord will be a shelter for his people,
a stronghold for the sons of Israel.
‘You will learn then that I am the Lord your God,
dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.
Jerusalem will be a holy place,
no alien will ever pass through it again.’
When that day comes,
the mountains will run with new wine
and the hills flow with milk,
and all the river beds of Judah
will run with water.
A fountain will spring from the house of the Lord
to water the wadi of Acacias.
Egypt will become a desolation,
Edom a desert waste
on account of the violence done to the sons of Judah
whose innocent blood they shed in their country.
But Judah will be inhabited for ever,
Jerusalem from age to age.
‘I will avenge their blood and let none go unpunished’,
and the Lord shall make his home in Zion.
Gospel
Luke 11:27-28
‘Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’
As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’ But he replied, ‘Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
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