AWAITING THE FULLNESS OF HIS PRESENCE
TUESDAY, TWENTY SECOND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
1 Thess 5:1-6,9-11; Ps 27:1,4,13-14; Lk
4:31-37
The Revelation of His Presence
Many of the Fathers of
the Church explain the coming of the Lord in threefold terms: his coming in our
nature at his birth as man, his coming in glory at the end of time, and his
coming in grace, which is between the two comings. His coming in grace is the
same as his coming in mysteries, for our Lord is hidden in his grace, which he
offers us to aid us to walk the blessed way to heaven. Hidden in his grace,
Christ is always with us, for his grace is available everywhere. We called our
universe anointed yesterday because the Spirit of God animates everything in
the universe and guides its operations for the fulfilment of God’s will.
Similarly, we consider the universe as a graced universe, for the Eternal Word
is present everywhere in the universe of things and reveals his truth and light
through them. Thus, Saint Augustine explains that the coming of the Lord in grace
provides a path leading from the first coming as man to his coming in the glory
of his Father. Faith in his coming as man provides us the spiritual facility we
need to walk the way of grace and truth, which is everywhere present to us. Our
Lord feeds us with his truth in the universe he created for us, and in the
scriptures he gave to us.
The faithful learn the
same lesson from the universe and from the word of God. Saint Paul, therefore,
sees no need to write to the Thessalonian Christians about the coming of the
Lord, because the Christian life prepares us for the glorious coming. “You will
not be expecting us to write anything to you, brothers, about ‘times and
seasons’, since you know very well that the Day of the Lord is going to come
like a thief in the night.” His coming is like a thief in the night, only for
those who are living in the darkness of ignorance of the truth of the Lord,
which is present everywhere. If his presence in mysteries and in grace has
illuminated our way and life, his coming would not be in the night for us, but
in the day of his truth. Thus, Saint Paul continues: “But it is not as if you
live in the dark, my brothers, for that Day to overtake you like a thief. No,
you are all sons of light and sons of the day: we do not belong to the night or
to darkness, so we should not go on sleeping, as everyone else does, but stay
wide awake and sober.” Those not attending to the presence of the truth among
us are considered sleeping because they are not awake, walking, and working in
the daylight of truth. When we are asleep spiritually in a sinful life of
faithlessness, we leave our house or land unattended and unguarded, such that
the evil one enters to subdue us and plant his evil presence within our space
or land.
Without faith, it is
impossible to walk the way of truth, which is present but hidden to ordinary
human perception. The refusal to make an act of faith in the revelation of the
truth is an act of acquiescence with powers of darkness. Our Lord revealed the
presence of the dark forces among the people in demonstration of our
understanding here. “In the synagogue there was a man who was possessed by the
spirit of an unclean devil, and it shouted at the top of its voice, ‘Ha! What
do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who
you are: the Holy One of God.’” When we believe in the revelation of Jesus
Christ in grace and mysteries, we receive his light upon and within us to drive
out the presence of darkness and its forces tormenting us. Truth always
liberates, enlightens, and rebuilds us. Even now, in faith, we are walking
towards the full day of eternity, which will be full when he comes in glory.
Thus, the glory of his coming is already shining on our faces as we process our
faith and celebrate his presence in grace and in the mysteries. As the psalmist
affirms, the faithful live in the presence of the Lord always and yearn for the
fullness of his manifestation. “There is one thing I ask of the Lord, for this
I long, to live in the house of the Lord, all the days of my life, to savour
the sweetness of the Lord, to behold his temple.” By tasting his presence every
day in truth and in mysteries, we yearn more and more for him. “The Spirit and
the bride say: Come, Lord Jesus!”
Let us pray: God of
might, giver of every good gift, put into our hearts the love of your name, so
that, by deepening our sense of reverence, you may nurture in us what is good
and, by your watchful care, keep safe what you have nurtured. Through our Lord
Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy
Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
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