DAILY GOSPEL AND REFLECTION, NOV. 23, 2014 ( SUNDAY ) The Judgment of the Nations Mt 25:31-46 [Jesus said to his disciples,] 31“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, 32and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, 36naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ 37Then the righteous will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ 40And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me. 41Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’ 44Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’ 45He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ 46And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” REFLECTION DIGNITY AND DUTY. Jesus as King does not leave the world to itself. As Son of Man, he holds dominion over the whole of creation. He continues to give life. He works in the hearts and minds of men and women. He grants forgiveness to every sinner, and gives meaning to our existence. Most important of all, Christ the King bestows on every human being the unique grace of belonging to his kingdom. We become partakers of his kingdom and sharers of his kingship. The world today is ruled by superpowers that vie for control of the world’s markets. Christ’s kingdom, however, cannot be compared to any temporal power or earthly realm. The kingdom of God goes beyond what the eye has seen, or the ear heard, or the heart of man conceived (cf 1 Cor 2:9). It is a life of everlasting happiness to which all men and women are invited. As people who share in the dignity of Christ the King, we also share in the responsibility of governing the world. We are called to care for the earth and for our fellow human beings. Christ points out to us very clearly the way we should fulfill this duty. In the Gospel, Jesus lays down, in very concrete terms, examples of the shepherding love that we should bestow on one another. It is a love that feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, shelters the homeless, and welcomes the stranger. In simple terms, we are called to love our neighbor. Before we can claim that we serve Christ as our King, we must examine our words and deeds. By our love and service to our neighbor, will the world be able to see in us the image of the Creator and Redeemer?
Posted on: Sat, 22 Nov 2014 22:27:08 +0000
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