I am having second thoughts about doing any Christmas shopping this year. It is not that I will be too busy to shop or uncaring about my friends or at a loss as to what to get them. According to the Mayan calendar, the world will end on December 21, 2012, so there will be no Christmas. Perhaps on that day, we will indeed witness the coming of the Son of Man in the spectacular manner described by Jesus in the gospel.
Now if you think I am serious about that or if you are, listen again to the rest of what Jesus had to say at the end of the gospel. “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
History cites many examples of people who honestly believed that the world would end on a certain date. Writers have made fortunes by imagining how the world might end. Certain cataclysmic historical events have changed the world but the planet earth continues to spin and function in much the same manner it has since its conception eons ago.
What we hear in these readings is defined as apocalyptic literature, which emerged 200 years before Christ and was popular for four centuries as a means to provide hope to believers, both Jews and Christians, when the circumstances and settings of their lives challenged their faith. However, this manner of literature was never intended to be taken literally.
Both the passage from Daniel and the Gospel reflect ancient Jewish understanding of the endtime, which is not to be confused with the end of time. The end of time suggests the literal end of the world as we know it, something traumatic beyond our comprehension. Those who interpret the Bible literally envision the rapture taking place then when the Son of Man comes in glory to gather the elect from the ends of the earth.
Scripture scholars contend that the endtime refers to the end of one era and the start of another. In this case, Israel believed that the sinful age it was living in would come to an end and an age of holiness would follow. The period of transition from one age to another would be a time of purification.
We need not speculate on when time will end. When we live our faith to the fullest in response to God’s love for us, all of the uncertainties surrounding the end of time, whether it be the end of the world or our own earthly lifespan will make little difference for we will be ready for the transition from this journey measured by time to one that will be timeless.
Our Christian faith has taught us that beyond the threshold of death, there lie two eternal dwelling places: heaven and hell. That notion did not always exist. Ancient Israel believed that everyone, good or bad, went to Sheol, a sort of dark, watery place of eternal rest. Daniel, however, speaks of two destinies, heaven and hell, saying “some shall live forever; others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace.”
God is urging each of us to be ready when our appointed time comes. For better or worse, we can do much to impact our relationship with God before that moment arrives. While we cannot avoid a sudden death, we can avoid an unprepared death by striving always to live in peace with God, following the Ten Commandments and the teachings and precepts of our Church.
Instead of scanning the heavenly horizon, we are called to look over the landscape of our lives. Mark’s intent is not to frighten us into submission but to give us hope and confirm the lasting value of our good efforts in this lifetime. In order for us to be prepared for our encounter with Christ, we must always seek to be friends with God. Doing so, we can be certain that we will enjoy the eternal happiness that awaits those who follow God.
What takes place at death will be a continuation of how we behave in this lifetime. The final ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to God is worked out in the little things we do that come our way each day. Where we spend eternity depends on us. God doesn’t decide our eternal fate. We choose where we want to end up. If a person has chosen to live apart from God in this lifetime and defied the love commands of Jesus, then at the end of time that person remains where she or he has freely chosen to be.
If any of us know people who aren’t concerned about where they will spend eternity, let me give you a few observations about hell. Maybe it will motivate us to share our concerns with those whom we love who may have the stain of mortal sin on their souls. First of all, forget about the fires of hell. Hell’s deepest essence is anguish, agony, hate, sorrow, sadness, regret, and misery.
The misery of knowing things could have been different if I had chosen to do things differently, Knowing that I and I alone am the one to blame for being in this place called hell. I have no one to blame but myself for turning down God’s invitation to eternal life.
I have no reason to live but live I must, forever cut off from God. Made for God, I am now literally Godless. Made for love yet now I am completely loveless. Made for union with others and with God, but now I am eternally alone and I could have prevented it.
C.S. Lewis expressed this reality quite well in his book, The Great Divorce. He wrote, “There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘Thy will be done.'”
So a fitting question we must all honestly answer is “Whose will is being done?” If we are following God’s will, then we indeed can “look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.”