Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time
Feast of the Poor.

First Reading

Daniel 12,1-3

'At that time Michael will arise -- the great Prince, defender of your people. That will be a time of great distress, unparalleled since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, your own people will be spared -- all those whose names are found written in the Book. 'Of those who are sleeping in the Land of Dust, many will awaken, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting disgrace. Those who are wise will shine as brightly as the expanse of the heavens, and those who have instructed many in uprightness, as bright as stars for all eternity.

Psalmody

Psalm 16

Antiphon

O Lord, hide me in the shadow of your wings.

Lord, hear a cause that is just,
pay heed to my cry.

Turn your ear to my prayer :
no deceit is on my lips.

From you may my judgement come forth.
Your eyes discern the truth.

You search my heart, you visit me by night.
You test me and you find in me no wrong.

My words are not sinful
as are men's words.

I kept from violence
because of your word,

I kept my feet firmly in your paths;
there was no faltering in my steps.

I am here and I call, you will hear me, O God.
Turn your ear to me; hear my words.

Display your great love, you whose right hand saves
your friends from those who rebel against them.

Guard me as the apple of your eye.
Hide me in the shadow of your wings

From the violent attack of the wicked
My foes encircle me with deadly intent.

Their hearts tight shut,
their mouths speak proudly.

They advance against me, and now they surround me.
Their eyes are watching to strike me to the ground

As though they were lions ready to claw
or like some young lion crouched in hiding.

Lord arise, confront them, strike them down!
Let your sword rescue my soul from the wicked;

Let your hand, O Lord, rescue me from men,
from men whose reward is in this present life.

You give them their fill of your treasures;
they rejoice in abundance of offspring
and leave their wealth to their children.

As for me, in my justice I shall see your face
and be filled, when I awake, with the sight of your glory.

Second Reading

Hebrews 10,11-14.18

Every priest stands at his duties every day, offering over and over again the same sacrifices which are quite incapable of taking away sins. He, on the other hand, has offered one single sacrifice for sins, and then taken his seat for ever, at the right hand of God, where he is now waiting till his enemies are made his footstool. By virtue of that one single offering, he has achieved the eternal perfection of all who are sanctified. When these have been forgiven, there can be no more sin offerings.

Reading of the Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Yesterday I was buried with Christ,
today I rise with you who are risen.
With you I was crucified;
remember me, Lord, in your kingdom.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Mark 13,24-32

'But in those days, after that time of distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will come falling out of the sky and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then he will send the angels to gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the world to the ends of the sky. 'Take the fig tree as a parable: as soon as its twigs grow supple and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. So with you when you see these things happening: know that he is near, right at the gates. In truth I tell you, before this generation has passed away all these things will have taken place. Sky and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 'But as for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son; no one but the Father.

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Yesterday I was buried with Christ,
today I rise with you who are risen.
With you I was crucified;
remember me, Lord, in your kingdom.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Homily

The Gospel reminds us that the "Son of Man" comes not in the weariness of our habits and he does not insert himself in the natural course of things. When he comes, he will bring a radical change to the lives of men and women and of all creation. To express this profound transformation, Jesus revives the typical language of an apocalyptic tradition widely known during those times and speaks of cosmic events that will upset the order of nature. Jesus speaks of the "last days," but he says also that such upheavals will occur in "this generation." The "Day of the Lord" foreshadowed by Daniel and the other prophets bursts into every generation, and even more so into each day. Jesus says, "You know that he is near, at the very gates." This expression is used at other times in Scripture to urge believers to be ready to welcome the Lord who is coming. "Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me" (Rev 3:20). At the doors of each day of our life, it is the Lord who knocks and today, Sunday in which we do the memorial of the poor, we remember that at our door there always Jesus in the flesh of the hungry, the foreigner, the sick, and the prisoner. He is the Lazarus covered with wounds who waits to be welcomed and the judgment of God, who intends to transform the time in which we live, depends on this welcoming.
Pope Francis wanted the Sunday before the feast of Christ the King to be dedicated to the feast of the poor. All churches are invited to open their doors to the poor. He himself does so at St Peter's. And, at the end of the liturgy, he will offer them a meal. With this feast of the poor we understand better what is said several times in the Gospel about the kingdom where Christ is king. It is sufficient to read the first of the beatitudes: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." And again: the kingdom of heaven is like a banquet prepared by the Lord to which the poor are invited. This is the kingdom where Jesus commands, or rather, serves. The Christmas lunch that takes place every year in the basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere and in so many other places around the world comes to mind. It is an event that one does not forget. That one must not forget. And the lesson is clear: the link between the altar of the Eucharist and the table for the poor. Two inseparable altars, two inseparable worships. And we witness the miracle of an extraordinary friendship between Jesus' disciples and the poor, who are also Jesus' ones. It is the image of that universal brotherhood that knows neither barriers nor borders that the Gospel came to realise.