19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Victor Feltes
Today’s Gospel is first and foremost about the Second Coming of Christ and our judgment on the Last Day. Jesus Christ, who called himself the Son of Man, said that in the End Times “the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” The Book of Revelation agrees: “Behold, [Jesus Christ] is coming amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him… ‘Behold, I am coming soon. I bring with me the recompense I will give to each according to his deeds.’” “But of [the timing of] that day and hour,” Jesus says, “no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” (The Son of God is divine and therefore knows everything, but in his humanity Jesus apparently did not know the date or was not supposed to reveal it.) Could Jesus Christ return during our lifetime? Of course. But even if Christ returns a thousand years from now we should still heed his warning to be prepared today, for we do not know the day and hour of our deaths when he will judge our souls and deeds.
Jesus’ parable about the returning master and his servants suggests another secondary interpretation. Consider the story’s details. The master has come from a wedding. He comes to his own house. He wants his servants to be there, ready to greet him. And in response he will “have the servants recline at table and proceed to wait on them.” And “should he come in the second or third watch” (when it is darkest and most inconvenient) and find them present, attentive, and well-prepared, those servants will be greatly blessed. So where is the Lord Jesus’ house to which he returns? Where does he want his servants to be present and pleased to see him? Where would he have his faithful servants rest, partake in a meal served by him, and receive his blessed rewards? This church is his house. We are his servants. And Jesus wants us to meet him here for a meal. Our Lord arrives here joyfully from a wedding. He wedded the Church to himself two thousand years ago. And the Holy Mass extends that mystery throughout time and space to here and now. Indeed, ‘blessed are those called to the wedding supper of the Lamb’ and who are here and ready to greet him.
Yet, for too many people, the precious time of Sunday Mass is an hour when they do not expect the Son of Man to come. Despite our many scheduled weekend Masses, they still do not attend. Others show up out of obligation or custom or habit, but fail to be attentive. Perhaps they do not yet believe—despite Scripture, ancient teaching, and centuries of miracles—that Jesus Christ is truly present in the Holy Eucharist. Or perhaps they do not yet realize that they are not mere spectators at Holy Mass but offering a sacrifice with the priest and the whole community, the eternal offering of the Son to the Father, through which everything united to Christ is raised up to heaven and grace and blessings are poured down to earth in return.
Be present and be vigilant. Distractions will come to anyone who is committed to regular Massgoing and daily prayer, but do not be discouraged by the times your thoughts accidentally wander. Every decision to turn your attention back to the Lord is another act of love and devotion. Sometimes those so-called distractions are actually things the Lord wants you to pray about or offer up to him. Ask the Holy Spirit and he will help you to pray as you ought, to gird your loins with reverence and light your lamps with faith and be like servants who are glad and blessed upon their master’s return from a wedding.
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