WITH
POWER AND GLORY
In today's Gospel, Jesus describes the final days when we
"will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and
glory" (Mk 13:26). Usually the thought of the last days inspires us with a
healthy fear of the Lord. My thought today is that for us, who serve God as
Christians, the coming of Christ should fill us with great hope and joyful
expectation. It is something like the hope in our hearts when we have a loved
one who becomes very ill and we pray for them to become well again. The thought
of the last days should be joyful and happy for those who follow Christ Jesus.
That is the theme of the words we pray right after the "Our Father"
at every Mass:
"by the help of
Your mercy, we may be always free from sin
and safe from all
distress,
as we await the blessed
hope
and the coming of our
Savior, Jesus Christ."
Then we all pray in one voice:
"For the Kingdom,
the power, and the glory are Yours, now and forever."
The image of the fig tree in Mark's Gospel tells us that it was
a common and important source of food for the Jews. It bore fruit twice a year,
in the autumn and in the early spring. The prophet Joel mentions its fruit
bearing as a sign of favor from the Lord (Cf Joel 2:22). This parable foretells
the joy of God's Kingdom - the joy of new life and the promise of a new age of
peace and blessing.
We are called to live forever in this light and joy of God's
Kingdom! In the Responsorial Psalm we pray, "You are my inheritance, O
Lord. Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices" (Ps 16:1, 9).