FOR ALL LIVE TO HIM
We are certainly part of this
earth, but are you and I headed for something greater; something eternal?
In today's first reading from
the Book of Maccabees, we hear the story of King Antiochus, the ruler who
attempts to make the Hebrew people more like the Gentiles. Antiochus dies after
hearing of the successful revolt in Judah and he dies in a foreign land, which
is considered to be a punishment for the oppression he caused the people of
Jerusalem. It fits well with our sense of justice when an oppressive tyrant
comes to a bad end or loses everything. It fulfills a desire for justice for
the least in our community. The poor, oppressed and hungry in our world often
live and die with many hardships and much pain.
Oftentimes, the poor,
oppressed and hungry are among the thousands killed or at least bereaved by
natural disasters. By the time Jesus Christ came into the world, and after
repeatedly noticing throughout their history that the heavenly Father's justice
is not always served in this world, the Hebrew people had come to believe that
there was an afterworld in which all became right and good. Part of that
belief, of course, was belief in the resurrection.
Here's a question to ponder
on today: We are certainly part of this earth, but are you and I headed for
something greater; something eternal? The Sadducees had a problem with this
question - they could not conceive of heaven beyond what they could see with
human eyes. Scripture gives us proof of heaven. For example, when God manifests
His presence to Moses in the burning bush we hear about the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob. He shows that the patriarchs who died hundreds of years
previously were still alive in God.
Jesus Christ defeats their
arguments by showing that our Father is a living God of a living people. He was
the caring Father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when they lived. That relationship
could not cease with death. The ultimate proof of the resurrection is Jesus and
His victory over death when He rose from the tomb. In today's Responsorial
Psalm we acclaim, "I will rejoice in Your salvation, O Lord" (Ps
9:16a). God frees us from all that would harm us and others around us, so that
we may help ourselves and them as well.
Remember, before Jesus raised
Lazarus from the dead He exclaimed: "I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in Me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and
believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this" (Jn 11:25-26)?