Fortitude in the Face of Evil
Nov. 27: Wednesday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s readings are kind of in reverse order. In the Gospel, Jesus tells us to remain persistent, no matter how much others hate us. In the first reading, John describes the End Times where the glorious martyrs, having just defeated the Beast, sing about our God who remains “great and wonderful,” His ways “just and true.”
Reading 1
Rv 15:1-4
I, John, saw in heaven another sign, great and awe-inspiring: seven angels with the seven last plagues, for through them God’s fury is accomplished.
Then I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire. On the sea of glass were standing those who had won the victory over the beast and its image and the number that signified its name. They were holding God’s harps, and they sang the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:
“Great and wonderful are your works, Lord God almighty. Just and true are your ways, O king of the nations. Who will not fear you, Lord, or glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All the nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
The “Song of Moses” the martyrs sing after defeating the Beast is from Exodus.1 It’s also, possibly, the oldest passage in the Bible—a song sung in the desert after escaping Pharaoh, before the story of that escape was even written down.
The end of the world and rejoining with our creator will come full circle with the beginning of humanity’s connection to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 7-8, 9
R. (Rev. 15: 3b) Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord, mighty God!
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord, mighty God!
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord, mighty God!
Let the sea and what fills it resound,
the world and those who dwell in it;
Let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy.
R. Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord, mighty God!
Before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to rule the earth;
He will rule the world with justice
and the peoples with equity.
R. Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord, mighty God!
The ancient Israelites, like most ancient people feared the open sea. Only God had the power to govern the ocean waters—a sign of chaos and death. Despite all the amazing things we can do today with technology, we can’t control the oceans, either. Only God is God.
Alleluia
Rv 2:10c
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain faithful until death,
and I will give you the crown of life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The virtue of fortitude is difficult to develop, but its rewards are infinite, because it supports all of the rest of the virtues.
Gospel
Lk 21:12-19
Jesus said to the crowd: “They will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony. Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.”
Jesus warns His followers that they will be tested; some will even face the ultimate test. But as John’s Revelation shows in the first reading, they will be victorious in the end, whatever their Earthly fate.
We have to be inspired by their sacrifice, to face whatever challenges occur in our lives, as well.