By DSS. ERIKA BUMANLAG, UMC
Dn 12:1-3
Ps 16:5, 8, 9-10, 11
Heb 10:11-14, 18
Mk 13:24-32
Back in 2011, there was a time when a particular date was anticipated to be the Second Coming, and I remember the youth gathering in the church, all of us praying until midnight, preparing for what we thought would be a big earthquake, a blinding, shining light, and the clouds opening up to separate and save those who have been faithful til the end, just as the Bible had described it. We closed our eyes, praying fervently, hoping to be saved and to ascend into heaven with God. Then the clock struck 12. We all took a deep breath, holding it, and then gradually exhaled. The silence was deafening. We started to open our eyes, just a little at first, then looked around at each other, from left to right. We were all still in the room; no one had been taken away. Did this mean we weren’t saved? Or… had nothing happened at all? It took us a while to realize that maybe the Second Coming they predicted was just a scam. And I did not know if we were sad that it did not happen or happy that we got to still live the life we wanted since we were too young for that.
The gospel for this week could lead to many interpretations, some taking it literally, which is why the prediction of dates occurred. But looking at the commentary of verses (28-32) from Henry Matthew, it is explained that when Jesus’ disciples asked him about the future, they confused two different events: the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world. They thought that the temple in Jerusalem would last as long as the world did, but that was a misunderstanding. Jesus corrected them, explaining that the world wouldn’t end when Jerusalem was destroyed. Instead, he explained that his second coming and the final judgment would happen after the tribulations as he illustrated in verses 24-27 “In the days after that time of trouble the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses (GNT). These verses sound dark and frightening, the reason why perhaps we tend to associate the end times with periods of simultaneous disasters like what we’ve been experiencing these past few weeks with the series of typhoons arriving one after another.
This is followed by Jesus’ description of the fig tree in verses 28-29 where he relates it to recognizing when the time is near. Hence, it is hard for us to ignore the changes in our climate which seem to be getting more intense due to global warming, and hugely affecting our lives. Who would have thought that it would snow in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nafud desert, or that Mount Fuji would go through a season without a single snowflake when it should be covered in snow? Or that the Philippines would face one powerful typhoon after another in November while a decade ago it was a lot more different; and other countries that never used to deal with flooding are now submerged in water? This is in addition to the war between countries, and the suffering of people due to discrimination, oppression, exploitation, and the like.
When Jesus said that no one knows the time of His second coming, was it simply to keep us from trying to predict when it will happen, or is it His way of telling us to focus on how we live in the midst of the tribulations we’re experiencing? Perhaps it’s a reminder that instead of obsessing over when the end will come, we, the community of faith, should pay attention to how we respond to the challenges our nation and the world face today. It’s an invitation to focus on our accountability to one another, to our communities, and to God. The chaos, disasters, and struggles we encounter are not just signs of an uncertain future, but opportunities for us to act with compassion, justice, and hope. Do we mobilize the church to provide humanitarian response to those who need it the most? Do we advocate for climate action to prevent further harm to our planet and promote policies that improve the lives of vulnerable communities? Do we offer compassionate support and messages of hope to those facing crises?
By living out our faith actively in these difficult times, we align ourselves with God’s purpose and we continuously prepare to what lies ahead. After all, in the passage lies a hidden message of hope and salvation: the moment when God will gather His people, bringing them together from all corners of the earth, safe in His presence and assured of His promise of deliverance and peace.
Balik-Tanaw is a group blog of Promotion of Church People’s Response. The Lectionary Gospel reflection is an invitation for meditation, contemplation, and action. As we nurture our faith by committing ourselves to journey with the people, we also wish to nourish the perspective coming from the point of view of hope and struggle of the people. It is our constant longing that even as crisis intensifies, the faithful will continue to strengthen their commitment to love God and our neighbor by being one with the people in their dreams and aspirations. The Title of the Lectionary Reflection would be Balik –Tanaw , isang PAGNINILAY . It is about looking back (balik) or revisiting the narratives and stories from the Biblical text and seeing, reading, and reflecting on these with the current context (tanaw).
