“Teacher, when will this happen?” Jesus is asked this question today in relation to the fate of the Temple in Jerusalem to which he responds with a       list of catastrophes and calamities for our world and how they affect us. He describes a world where terrible things will happen, wars, earthquakes       

   and fear and destruction. But the answer to all this fear and angst can be found in our first reading from Malachi when he says, “there will arise the

   sun of justice with its healing ways.”

As I read this Gospel for today from Luke, the song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” by Billy Joel came to mind. If you recall, Billy Joel recites a litany of

   events that happened in the 1950’s all the way up to the present time of the song – the 1980’s. He ends his lists of events by saying “hypodermics on 

   the shore, China’s under martial law, rock and roller cola wars, I can’t take it anymore” before singing the refrain “we didn’t start the fire, it was always

   burning since the world was turning.” Impose the words of Jesus into the song from the Gospel today – nations on the march for war, famines causing

   hunger wars and earthquakes trying to break us all. Jesus is here to stop to stop it all.

This Gospel reading comes to us at a time in our church where we look both to the end of times and the hope of a savior. Today is the 33rd

   Sunday and in two weeks we will be lighting the first candle on the Advent wreath. Our readings today remind us that events will happen that cause

   us fear, but the hope of a savior brings peace to us as well. Our journey through life is always full of ups and downs which can cause us fear and joy.

   Just look at the month of November – we  remember our departed loved ones and then we gather as a family for Thanksgiving dinner. 

However, we are reminded from our First Reading that the sun of justice will come with his healing rays, and we know that a savior will soon be

   born for us. A savior to stop the world from burning and bring the promise of hope to all of us – the promise of arising at the end of time. See, in the

   promise and birth of a savior, we see a day when the evildoers will be set ablaze leaving no root or branch. That evildoer is death and sin. The promise

   of a savior is a promise that sin has no power over death because the sun of justice will use his healing rays to save us.

That is the promise of God throughout our salvation history – the promise that he will send us a savior to break the chains of death and sin and

   allow us to rise on the last day. We didn’t start the fire, but we know God is here to heal us with his rays to lift us higher. And of course, we know God is

   faithful all the time so he will send us a savior. God Bless You!!

   Deacon Lou Presenza