ࡱ> 241#` bjbj .   ~$h RRR ~R~RRR !# R~0R p R R,RH <d< HOMILY FOR THE THIRTY SECOND SUNDAY OF THE YEAR C OUR HOPE IN RESURRECTION The Gospel is a mouse-trap story where Jesus is presented with an apparently unsolvable proposition. A group of Jewish fundamentalists, the Sadducees, whose philosophy was that there is no life after death, came to Jesus, not to talk about marriage, but to push their agenda as opposed to Jesus teachings about the life and kingdom to come. They invoked the writing of Moses to fortify their proposal to Jesus. The Sadducees, a politico-religious sect lived during the late post-Exile and New Testament period. According to Acts (23:8) the Sadducees deny belief in the resurrection, the immortality of the soul and the existence of the angels. They accepted as theologically authentic only what is written in the first five books of the Bible. Explicit teachings in the resurrection developed later in Old Testament writing were not acceptable to them. When Jesus came and preached about the resurrection of the dead, they felt offended. To fault him, they conjured up a story of seven brothers who, one after the other, married the same woman and promptly died. In responding to the their proposition Jesus told them that the concept of resurrection is present in Exodus 3:6, 15 and 16, where God told Moses that He is the God of Isaac, Abraham and Jacob. The problem with the Sadducees was one of ignorance. Later writings like the book of the Wisdom and Machabees (e.g. first reading) show the Jewish belief in life after life. The words of Martha in John 11:24 to Jesus about the death of Lazarus is a pointer to this: I know that He (Lazarus) shall rise again, in the resurrection at the last day. Resurrection is the rising from the dead to life. It means that death is not the end of life but a transition from life after life. Jesus proves this through his transfiguration and death. At his transfiguration (Mark 9:2-8), Moses and Elijah who died long before Jesus came into the world, appeared alive, which goes to show that they only died in the flesh but alive in eternity. As a matter of fact, Life will be meaningless if there were no resurrection, and God cannot make that mistake and still answer the God of the living and the dead. So, with resurrection we have hope we will live on even after death in eternity. The existence of resurrection helps us to accept death when it comes without fear. Death as we all know is a threat, and so many people are living in perpetual fear of it. Even the mere mention of death makes some people to develop high blood pressure. Fear of death makes some become sad when they find out that they are getting old. With hope in the resurrection we can be courageous when the doctor tells us we are going to die. This is what happened in the first reading. The seven brothers accepted death willingly because of their hope in the resurrection. It is our belief in the resurrection that makes us prepare the dying for a good death through the sacrament of anointing. It is unfortunate that some of us do not know what this sacrament is all about. As a result we are often disappointed when we discover that the sick person is interested only in anointing than in reconciliation with God. But it is in reconciliation with God that anointing depends to achieve its power. There is also the erroneous understanding that anointing is a last rite, which makes us treat it with 911 mentalities by calling the priest only when the patient is in danger of death. Anointing we should know, is the Sacrament for the living and not for the dead. Rather what the Church has for the dead is Christian funeral rite. The important message here is not only about life after death but about how to qualify for this life. Life after death awaits only those who find delight in keeping the commandments of God like the seven brothers in the first reading. Listen to the statement of commitment of the seven brothers in the first reading We are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors. This is the great message of todays celebration, to allow the hope in the resurrection to help us reject sin, knowing fully well that without fidelity no one shall enjoy the life after death with God in heaven (Rev. 21:27). 2LNQ] " b d e i j x  $PQ%:p6~ N^=>TUVWrh^Khh+8h#hq H23LM WWgd#$a$gd# ,1h/ =!"#$% @@@ NormalCJ_HaJmH sH tH DA@D Default Paragraph FontRi@R  Table Normal4 l4a (k@(No List 23LM W W000000000000LM000  ^ ^ =>TUnr^K+8q #@8W00L)"@UnknownGz Times New Roman5Symbol3& z Arial"hQQ/CC!r42QHX)?#21HOMILY FOR THE THIRTY SECOND SUNDAY OF THE YEAR CRev. Cletus ImoRev. Cletus ImoOh+'0$ <H h t 4HOMILY FOR THE THIRTY SECOND SUNDAY OF THE YEAR CRev. Cletus Imo Normal.dotRev. 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